Fantastic Outdoor Land Art on the Estate of Winery Chateau la Coste

Fantastic Outdoor Land Art on the Estate of Winery Chateau la Coste

A landscape is often beautiful in itself. Nevertheless, a conscious addition by an artist can be of great added value. It contributes to a different experience of the environment.

My travels have already taken me to several places with landscape art on display or as part of the collection, such as Insel Hombroich in Germany, Museum Kröller-Müller in the Netherlands, and the Beaufort event in Belgium.

In this article, I will tell you about another great location that is well worth visiting: the organic winery Chateau la Coste.

Read more

Where to Sell your Products of your Creative Hobby or Business

Where to Sell your Products of your Creative Hobby or Business

There are many aspects to think about when you want to monetize your hobby. Where to sell your products is a major one.

When I still was a graphic designer I always joked I should find a new hobby, because I didn’t have one anymore by making a business of my drawing skills.

And in a way, I did find another hobby when I returned to one of my former passions: ceramics. So I have experienced several hobbies that make money and know what difficulties and pleasures might come your way.

Read more

4 Modern Art Museums in Valencia that Are Very Worthwhile Exploring

4 Modern Art Museums in Valencia that Are Very Worthwhile Exploring

Several Modern Art museums in Valencia are so worthwhile to visit. 

Valencia is one of my favourite cities for a midweek trip. It is only 3 hours by car from my village and offers a huge variety of art, culture, and nature. The latter, in the beautiful botanical garden or in the immediate vicinity with beaches and marshes.

There are all kinds of museums in Valencia, plenty of choices. However, we like modern art the most, so those are the museums we visit more than once. 

Until now we went for architecture and art, but a chance conversation with a compatriot during our visit to Bombas Gens has made us aware of the opera and dance culture that can also be experienced in Valencia.

Read more

Intermezzo – Get Inspiration from Creativity

Intermezzo - Get Inspiration from Creativity

Inspiration and creativity are must-haves for me. I make drawings, collages or mixed media in some kind of theme.

It helps me keep my creative skills flowing.

An intermezzo is a short piece of music written to be played on its own or as part of a longer piece. For me, it’s a welcome break from my daily activities.

In the video are a couple of examples.

Read more

Ceramics in Magical Colours. How to Use the Colour of Clay Itself?

Ceramics in Magical Colours. How to Use the Colour of Clay Itself?

Decorating your ceramics can be done in many ways. Your clay object can be glazed or painted with engobes and underglazes. Even screen printing or applying transfers are possibilities.

A pure way of working is using the colour of the clay itself with at most a transparent glaze to emphasize the colours and make the object watertight.

Clay has different colours depending on the substances in the soil of the quarry. The clay you buy in the shops usually has only a few colours: it’s white, red, or ‘black’ (rather dark brown) after firing. Due to the industrialized process, the tones are generally the same every time.

Read more

Dyeing with Plants, a Natural Way of Colouring Fabric or Paper

Dyeing with Plants, a Natural Way of Colouring Fabric or Paper

Botanical colouring, natural colouring, or plant colouring are different names for dyeing with plants. All with the objective of having a toxic-free or almost toxic-free dyeing process.

When I was a ceramicist, I was very interested in the way colours are produced.

I made my own coloured slips for years and when I wrote my article about the different colours of clay my interest in natural colouring, in general, was aroused once again.

Read more