UNKnowN x Creative journeys - Stefan Ormeling

Although Stefan Ormeling’s art may be recognized by its skillful technique and an incredible attention to small details, it is always evolving in its subject matter. “Echoes of Our Lives” exhibits his work from two different series, marking the artist’s versatility and continued innovation. Stefan stopped by UNKnowN Art Gallery to have a little chat and let us in on his process, inspiration, and what’s in store for his work in the future!

You can check out Stefan’s pieces at the Echoes of Our Lives exhibition in Amsterdam Noord until the first of December

Polina Nosova (UNKnowN Art Gallery). You say most of your paintings are based on storytelling through collages and surrealistic imagery. What kind of stories do you like to tell in your work? ‍

^{Stefan Ormeling. I use storytelling as a base to build a scenery and to illustrate my thoughts with visuals, as opposed to making a specific point or creating a deeper meaning. With my work, I try to keep the audience intrigued so they spend more time to look at my paintings than the average 28 seconds. For instance, in “Searching for Patrick”, we see two people playing chess. It was inspired by the imagery from The Queen’s Gambit, which is a visually really nice show that I had been watching at the time of painting this work. The main character wins almost every game until the very end, but in the painting her opponent knows he is winning, and in his mind, he is already celebrating his victory by smoking a cigar in a bathtub. This kind of distortion and double exposure forms a dreamy composition.}

^{On top of all this, SpongeBob—in the form of a balloon—is looking through the window. There is no deeper meaning beyond just me thinking that the empty space in the window needed some crazy stuff happening in it. This small feature formed a bridge to the next painting, in which you find a girl having a tea party with a big green octopus and a little red crab on a floating boat in a luxurious baroque living room. It seems very odd, but if you are familiar with the SpongeBob show, you can recognize that these characters, although portrayed differently, are his friends from the show. However, Patrick, SpongeBob’s best friend, is not among them. Hence the title, “Still No Patrick?”}

PN. Your series of paintings contain distinct themes. You mentioned that the paintings of the Bali series were inspired by the tropics of Bali. However, your SpongeBob series looks completely different. What evoked a turn to these images?

^{SO. I know it’s smart to repeat yourself so people will get familiar with your work and your style sticks like an autograph in their minds. But sometimes, it’s a bit boring to do the same thing over and over again. That’s why I like to explore and make series with enough paintings I could fill a show with, and then move on to the next one.}

PN. Why surrealism? What does surrealism, in your view, convey that other styles are not able to?

^{SO. Surrealism is a style where you can do whatever you like. You can combine images that have nothing to do with each other but still make sense together, like in a dream. People often find new things happening when they look at my art. I like that surprise.}

PN. I saw that you have been working on a series which depict notable places in Amsterdam Noord. What do you want to say with these series? Will they employ the same collage and surrealistic technique as your other ones, or is there a shift in your technique?

^{SO. Yes, my new series is about the area I work in. My studio is at Zamenhof, right next to the vibrant streets of Het Hamer Kwartier, where old, industrial buildings are being taken over by restaurants, bars, and galleries (like yourself), along with other creative hubs. Eventually, the area is going to host a lot of apartment buildings. So, gentrification is definitely in progress. With these series I am documenting all of my favorite spots to immortalize them in paint before they are all gone. This series will be realistic because I am just documenting from my point of view.}  

PN. Take us through your creative process. Do you sketch in a notebook first to develop your ideas, or go straight to the canvas? What inspires you?

^{SO. I form a certain scene in my mind and then search for pictures and color ways. Nowadays, I use more and more of my own material, but before that I just ran through the internet and used whatever images felt good, and change and cut them for references. I start straight away on the canvas, and then build on it further during the process.}

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PN. How would you say your art has developed? I see every new series being very different from the other one, not only in the subject matter of course, but the stylistic devices and techniques as well. How does this change take place?

^{SO. I think it’s a normal situation of growth since I love what I’m doing. Improvement is not quitting, but continuing what you do and learn from mistakes and other people.}

PN.  You work with mostly acrylics. Are you interested in working with other materials, making sculptures perhaps? Or do you for the foreseeable future feel like you want to stay within the fine arts?

^{SO.  I like art in general so let see what the future holds for me. I am always open for new adventures}