Inside the whale

A descent into the magical world of childhood, of the unconscious. I’m drawn to that which is left unsaid; secrets, taboos. Instead of relying on reason I've embraced imagination. This work is the result of my inner journey, a cry that had to be released.

Inside the whale

In a child’s magical world nothing yet is determined. Everything is still wide open, carefree, hopeful, in motion, enchanting. Wonder and ignorance meet there where the shadow side of our existence remains latent. This openness makes us receptive, fragile and defenseless. While we may be suspicious of darkness, we cannot grasp it, and that which we suppress finds its place in the shadows.

I observe and let my inner world determine what I capture. As a child I regularly had nightmares about being inside a whale. What I perceived became a world of imagination. The whale is a mythical creature and knows of depths we are not aware of. She is huge, unfathomable, a monster. Being in inside feels both oppressive and enveloping.

‘Inside the whale” speaks of fate, ambivalence and the unsaid. The work immerses us in a world we, as adults, cannot imagine; the images are magical and charged as is the world of a child. Embrace, love, tenderness and longing stand beside loneliness, anguish, uncertainty and pain. This exhibition is about the irrevocable ambiguity of our existence, about innocence and experience. ‘Inside the whale” offers you the space to be in awe while you imagine that which is not shown.