About

Hi there, my name is Mieke and I'm an artist originally from the Netherlands, where I grew up and received my Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Willem the Kooning Academie in Rotterdam. Currently I live and work in Northern California.

While I love working freely, I also enjoy doing commissions. You can email me at miekeblee@gmail.com.

About the work 

My work mostly consists of larger scale charcoal and pastel drawings. I also paint, collage and play around with ceramic sculpture. 

I often find myself working a bit at the edge of chaos; lots of movement and touch happens in most of my pieces, and while I start with some general idea, I like to let the process affect the outcome. This is also what keeps the work alive; there is an immediate element of 'problem solving' going on, rather then just the execution of an idea. I'm interested in a sort of alchemical quest for meaning and beauty, which also brings with it an inherent risk of ending up with 'mud'.

I like my work to read a bit like handwriting, immediate and intimate, subtly revealing the human presence behind it. Generally, I don’t really aim to make obvious or bold statements, but rather emphasize the gradual process of something growing into its own being. I tend to work pretty abstract, but also enjoy using some figurative and symbolic elements, to bring the work closer to the human psychology.

The introvert in me would say what matters is whether you connect to something on a personal level. But to address the extrovert as well, I'll just add that my work has been internationally collected, published in drawing annuals, used in several interesting high end design projects, and one may appear on a TV show soon.

I've been at it for many years now, and while it hasn't always been easy to keep it going, it still provides me with a sense of freedom that I hope to be able to share with you. Thanks for reading!

Love,

Mieke