Dienke Nauta

I have lived in New Mexico for 19 years and the landscape and culture have deeply impacted my work. I play with the space in between the artist I used to be back home in The Netherlands and with the artist I am now, here in Santa Fe. The approach of how I start on my Art pieces is similar to that of an engineer. It starts with an idea that needs to be created, through drawing, painting, beading, sewing, book and print making. It's almost like I'm making prototypes, so I can understand through the process, why this idea needs to be developed. I find it very inspiring to work with relations between what you can imagine resides inside your body and what you can find in nature. Places like Bandelier are very inspiring to me knowing that the people left there in the 1500's and how strong their presence is. I brought my paintings back from the Netherlands a couple of years ago and I used them as a start for new paintings. Working with the history of my own life span versus the vast history in the landscape of New Mexico. Like an archeologist I unveil layers.