Else van Dierendonck

Else (Elseline) van Dierendonck was born on March 2, 1961, in Delft. Even at a young age, she excelled at drawing, music, languages, and the natural sciences. She has always possessed this versatility and multifaceted nature, along with all her doubts about what path to choose. Was she an artist or a manager? Did she want to live in the Netherlands or in France? Ultimately, she concluded that there is no such thing as one-dimensionality and set aside her preconceptions. She paints, creates (conceptual) sculptures, writes poetry, and writes; in addition, she has entered the field of human resources, where she holds an executive-level position. Today, she paints and earns her living as a freelance consultant.

In high school, just before her final exams, she lost interest and applied to the art academy with six drawings. This was in 1979; she decided to study art history and finally began her program in Groningen in 1981. Through the independent studies program, she increasingly focused on three-dimensional art and ultimately graduated with a degree in architectural design. A touch of optimism, lightness, sometimes a playful take on a subject, a delicate graphic approach to images with a hint of weightiness due to her choice of materials. Her sources of inspiration include Picasso, Mfro, and Matisse, as well as Giacometti and Cobra; she finds all these styles deeply fascinating. Between 1986 and 1989, she exhibited regularly in Gelderland and designed a children’s playground in Velp. She then moved to Bordeaux, where she quickly made a name for herself. She was invited as a special guest to exhibit alongside other artists from the region at the Galerie des Beaux Arts in Bordeaux. She created the illustrations for a book about children with disabilities 'un certain jour en novembre' In 2016, she began painting again; her work gradually evolved toward complete abstraction, freely expressing feelings and emotions. Cy Twombly is often cited. She calls it “podtische expression.” This is also how she experiences her poems and stories.