Some time ago i received an invitation from Jeroen Paalvast to visit him at work in the greenhouse on the roof of The New Farm, a high-rise office building in The Hague, where he is working until the end of this month (June 2024).
He would also be showing drawings he made during his time at the Drawing Invention Academy.
So a few days ago i visited him late in the morning, when the temperature was still a little bearable in the greenhouse, which is surrounded by a breathtaking panorama of The Hague.
Paalvast is a versatile draughtsman to whom memory is an important source of inspiration.
He was born and raised in the Westland region south of The Hague, which is the greenhouse capital of the Netherlands. We talked about the profound influence that has on his work.
Visually, he grew up in a world full of rectangles, but also of plant structures, specific smells, specific sensations of space in and around the greenhouses and also the usual childhood memories. A more recent stay in Turkey has also had a profound influence.
A scion of a typical traditional family of Westland market gardeners, he chose to become an artist. In that respect we talked about the usefulness and necessity of being an artist.
The autobiographical seems to have become not only his main source but also the reason for his draughtsmanship.
In The New Farm he shows both small drawings and large ones. The large ones tend to be more abstract and have a monumental quality. On top of The New Farm his drawings and ideas now float over The Hague.
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© Villa Next Door 2024
Contents of all photographs courtesy to Jeroen Paalvast
Bertus Pieters
For earlier studio visits see: https://villanextdoor3.wordpress.com/category/studio-visit/, https://villanextdoor2.wordpress.com/category/studio-visit/ and https://villanextdoor.wordpress.com/category/studio-visits/
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