SARAH VRIELING (1995)

Statement

Where my earlier work focused on the inner world and symbolism of the female figure, my current work turns toward the stillness of nature. Plants and flowers form the starting point, yet they do not appear as complete, recognizable forms. They often emerge aanstaande silhouettes, quiet contours and shadows of presence. They do not show the plant itself, but the memory of it.

By working with natural pigments, organic materials, and an earthy, subdued palette, the material itself takes on an autonomous role. My process is intuitive and layered, allowing space for transparency and chance. The soft transitions and incomplete forms reflect the fragility and transience of what grows and eventually disappears.



Within these silhouettes, a tension arises between presence and absence. Nature is no longer the subject, but a trace. A moment of stillness in which only the essence remains.

This work marks a return to the essential: to observing, to leaving things out, and to allowing form, material, and silence to speak, through which I allow myself to slow down.