“More women in government and leadership positions, please.”
Name
Natalia Wróbel
Profession
Visual Artist/Painter
Website
Who are you? What do you do?
I am a visual artist that makes paintings and drawings.
Where are you from?
I grew up in San Diego, California to Polish immigrant parents. I moved to New Hampshire for college, Brooklyn and Cambridge after college, and then Berlin last year. I now live in Amsterdam. Every place where I’ve lived deeply inspires my work, and I love to travel. You can say I find rootedness in a nomadic lifestyle.
Your style in 3 words?
Optimistic, energizing, dreamy
Your weakness? Your strength?
Tangential thinking/tangential thinking
What makes you different?
Ability to see the bright side of every situation, or at least attempt to
When did you decide to become an artist?
I dressed up as an artist for career day in kindergarten when I was four years old, complete with a beret, white paint smock and wooden palette with paint splotches. My mom helped me make my costume and never batted an eye when I said I wanted to pursue being an artist.
What do you find most fascinating about your work?
Painting is the closest to the divine we can get, aside from having children, I guess, (which I haven’t yet experienced.) It’s making something out of nothing; real life magic and alchemy.
A few words about your favourite creation?
Oo that’s a really hard question, but one favorite that comes to mind is the first painting in my Portal to Kairos series, where I was studying neural networks and mindfulness and making paintings that illustrated portals to liminal spaces, otherworldy landscapes, or ‘kairos’, the supreme moment. The vibrant color palette of that piece still stirs me. Luckily, that painting sold to collectors that are dear friends, so hopefully I’ll have a chance to see it again some day.
Someone else’s work that inspired or inspires you…
Mary Oliver and Pablo Neruda’s poetry, Nicole Krauss’ writing, Van Gogh and Gustav Klimt’s immortal paintings, El Anatsui’s textural tapestries made from recycled materials, Tara Donovan’s room-scale installations made from everyday materials, Mark Bradford’s monumental collage paintings, Hilma af Klint’s resonant and otherworldly compositions, and the Surrealists especially Miro, Dali, Roberto Matta, Wilfredo Lam, and Paul Klee. Also, contemporary artist Cecily Brown is a total master of oil paint. She is the queen.
A new project coming up or an idea you want to work on?
I just embarked on a new series inspired by recent travels around Colombia. I’m excited to infuse my compositions with the energy of that incredible country. Their sense of color is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. A Colombian friend joked that Colombians invented the color green. You’d believe it. The landscape is blanketed in every shade!!
Finish the sentence „More important than my career is…“
My family.
2018: Where are we going?
I hope we can learn from past mistakes and come together as one human kind and learn to live in love, balance, and respect with each other and the environment.
When the going gets tough…
Paint through it.
Your city’s favourite spots?
Boerenmarkt- an organic farmer’s market every Saturday in my neighbourhood, Yagoy yoga, The Botanical Garden followed by a bite and drink at Café de Plantage, the Van Gogh and Stedelijk Museums, A.P Bloem- my absolute favourite flower shop- like a jewellery box with exploding blooms, and Vondelpark. Biking through Noord. My favorite restaurant is Coba- Authentic Mexican in Amsterdam- My San Diego soul craves it! Favorite chill café: Back to Black, which has amazing afternoon sunlight. Anyone living in Amsterdam will tell you this is very important!!
Do you have a vision?
If I didn’t have a vision, I wouldn’t be able to paint. I paint what I see when I close my eyes.
What would you do if you could change the World?
Put some grace into the hearts of our leaders, or at least help them tap into their grace
More women in government and leadership positions, please.
Healing our relationship with our planet.
Tell us about your future plans…
Imbue the world with color, joy and light through art. Grow a garden. Visit every country.
Last but not least: what is your favourite Song?
Impossible to pick. But my current favorites: Any song by Bonobo, Volare by the Gipsy Kings, and if I’m feeling moody and intense, Divenire by Ludovico Eunaudi or Near Light by Olafur Arnalds.
#…?
#naturewins
Follow Natalia on Instagram ♥ Boerenmarkt ♥ Café de Plantage ♥ Coba Amsterdam ♥ Back to Black ♥ Stedelijk Museum ♥ MuseumVan Gogh Museum
