In her studio in her hometown, Eza Weijer (Veendam, 1981) works on imaginative work. Her paintings and illustrations arise from dream images and the subconscious, which makes her oeuvre both mysterious and recognizable. In 2023 she published the picture book Vogeltje en Walvis (‘The Little Bird and the Whale’). Eza is now exhibiting twenty paintings in Forma Aktua.
“My mother often read to me from picture books, such as Faeries by Brian Froud and Alan Lee, two illustrators. I found the worlds they evoked magical. I have copied a lot from Faeries, often with ink. I put my own spin on the drawings and saw how something new emerged. That was the incentive for me to become an artist. I did not study art, but studied International Business and later Social Pedagogical Work. I completed both courses, but I knew all along that I wanted to do other things with my life. After my studies, I went into healthcare and that's when my inspiration for drawing and painting came back. I now think it is an advantage that I did not attend an academy.
I have all my work upside down in the studio so that I am not distracted in any way.
I work completely on my feelings and am not distracted by how things should be done. I am completely free in my creativity and that gives me wings. The exhibition features twenty, mainly very personal paintings of mine from the period from 2016 to the present. There may be new work added, but that is not enforceable with me, so I will let that depend on how things go. When I paint, I provide a stimulus-free environment. I even have all my work turned upside down in the studio so as not to be distracted in any way. It starts with a vague image in my head, a feeling, an atmosphere, often a color and then it actually happens automatically, almost as if I no longer have anything to do with it. I am often surprised at what I see developing.”
Text: Marc Knip
Photo: Christopher Smith