Barbara Houwers (1958)
Education
1976-1982. Visual arts teachers Training Academy Utrecht-Amersfoort.
1990-1992. HKU-Utrecht School of the arts.
1992. Start professional practice.
The central theme in the works of Barbara Houwers is the strength and vulnerability of men. From 2016 she created new works as a sculptor. In various sub-themes and periods, form and concept have evaluated. A biography has been written by Art Historian Diana Kostman.
Barbara Houwers is a Dutch Visual Artist. She lives and works in Blaricum (Amsterdam region). Her collection consists of paintings, sculpture and 3D Designs. Barbara’s works can be found both in private and corporate collections and public buildings around the world.
“I manly work on the theme of repetition. Through echoing forms over and over, a sense of calm is created through grids and structures. The traditional brush plays a minor role in my latest works, but the paint is applied in several layers with the pallet knife. In this way the composition refers to itself and less to the tangible world.This can be compared with the abstract expressionism from the fifties of the 20th century, for example the practice of Jackson Pollock, which was simpified and almost geometric. Although these works at first glance approach abstraction, through reiterated shapes an almost formal pattern is created. By abandoning representational content and focussing on line, structure and tone I stepped into a sculptural dimension: A collection of new paintings, objects and statues that are a mix of materials and discplines. Tradition and innovation meet in this new artistic experiment”.
Art Historian Diana Kostman: “’The beauty of these works and the recent work of Houwers are about the structures of paint and the use of subtle or quite contrasting colours. In their beauty the works still appeal to the spectator on an emotional level rather than in a narrative way. In her present work Houwers takes a further step in also experimenting with the supporting device. Where Houwers initially used the traditional flat canvas her recent works have a three-dimensional character putting them on the edge of painting and sculpture. Therefore it is not surprising that recently Houwers is concentrating more on the creation of three-dimensional forms for instance by the use of 3D-printing techniques but also by reusing the more traditional technique of modelling and constructing”.
Public profile:
Exhibitions and archive
Publications and press
2015: Appointed as Member in the Order of Orange-Nassau by His Majesty The King of The Netherlands.
2017: Longlisted for the Aestetica Art prize Future Now: 100 Contemporary Artists 2017.
Non profit:
2003-2015. Boardmember Dooyewaard Foundation.
2005-2015. President (founding committee) Artist foundation Gooise Kunstkring.
2010-2015. President organisation for Female entrepreneurs: Entre Femmes-Gooi.
1984-2015. Art Advice, selection and exhibition committees.