Rediscovering art in adulthood.

I am happy to share the work of other artists and promote creatives on this blog with guest posts.  Please contact me if you are interested in being featured as a guest artist. 

Inge Zoet lives in Heerhugowaard, in the Netherlands.  I have not met Inge in person. Our paths crossed some time ago in the different online courses we have both taken, and where I have admired her art over time.

Below, Inge writes about her life as an artist, and her desire to create with the freedom of her youth. 

Art nurtured by parents

 "The creative adult is the child who has survived". I have used Ursula K. Le Guin’s quote as a mindset for most of my life.

 Hello! I am Inge Zoet, living in the Netherlands in Heerhugowaard, a town 45 kilometers north of Amsterdam.

I received two passions given to me by my parents: softball and art.

My father was an interior architect and in his free time, an incredible carpenter, director of many plays, as well as a writer. My parents always allowed and encouraged me to accompany them to the theater, museums, and galleries. That range of activities gave me a variety of interests in all kinds of art.

Like many artists I have met in person or online, I was a very creative child.

I was the girl who drew and then gave the art away as presents. I was also the student who liked any assignment as long as there was something to create.

Then, adult life got in the way.

The adult inner voice takes over

I became more practical and I made myself believe that other tasks were more important than creating. I lost the freedom of happily enjoying the creative process that I had during my childhood.

The inner critic’s voice became louder and told me my art was not good enough, that I would never be happy with my creativity, that I needed to be better as an artist.

I had lost the freedom found in the process of creating something new.

However, a back injury reminded me it was time to return to my childhood passion: drawing.

Now, I work full time four days of the week trying to spend the fifth day mainly for my art.

Connected to other artists through online classes

Online classes helped me learn to paint and I felt immediately connected to the art community. Really, I felt like a child in a candy store. I was surrounded by fellow online students, inspired by their work, and encouraged by their response to my art. That's how I met Louise!

After the year long class 'Let’s Face It' in 2017, hosted by Kara Bullock Art, and several lessons from Jane Spakowsky, I felt comfortable enough to share my own work online.

Artistic discoveries

I love painting portraits. Using mainly acrylics, I enjoy painting on a black background. It gives the colours such a deep dimension and I like the black outlines.

When I have more time in the future, I will focus on experimenting with different media such as the ones with inks inspired by Canadian artist Deb Weiers. This is my interpretation of her work.

Giving back to my community

In my volunteer work, I arranged expositions for a mixed media group of artists with and without mental or physical disabilities.

Our goal is to remove the stigma associated with any kind of disability. We help and motivate each other to highlight our talents.

Four times a year in ten community centers in our city, each artist has an exposition. In addition, twice a year we organize a group exhibition around one theme, like the last one of the Dutch painter, Mondriaan. Below is my contribution to the exhibition.

Art really does help people connect with each other! If you would like to know more about this group, please visit www.kcsamensterk.nl. It's in Dutch but there is lots of art to admire!

I would love it if you would like to share your art with me on Facebook so we can inspire and motivate each other.

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