Minke de Fonkert (1965)

During her artistry Minke shows us an interesting oeuvre, on which she has been working daily for over sixteen years. Already in the first acrylic paintings and later on in her pastel and coloured pencil drawing, the line drawing forms the basis again and again. The motives for her creative work are to be found in what she experienced in her own life and in the quirky animals and monsters from her dreams or fantasies.

Skunning pencil sketches, relating her admission into the hospital in 1991 make up the basis for her first large acrylic paintings on canvas. The lines in her drawings display thickenings as if she wants to emphasize the images in the composition. The lines seem to be alive, this effect makes the image look unreal. Minke is achieving the same effect in her flat paintings by a layered application of the material and binging depth by using colour within the contour lines. In her later work, we see, that she is playing with the image by going into detail and by introducing more figures all the time, she is leaving the original drawing barely recognizable. Thus Minke is spending countless hours on one piece. Often she works simultaneously on various pieces. It depends on her mood or if something important has happened whether she decides to start a new piece of work.

Whether the figures are animals, of fantasized beings, they all seem to come forth from an enchanted world and bear much resemblance in their appearance. Even the monsters in their brilliant colours are happy creatures, surrounded by flowers or other two dimensional flora and fauna, not threatening to the spectator. Minke is showing us a world that is by nature more sweet than serious.

Significant moments in her life, such as a stay in hospital, the death of a (be)loved one or a removal, are all translated by Minke into a painting or drawing. These serious events are larded in her work with many details and through the downscaling of the heavier themes and vice versa are stripped of their drama.

During the last years Minke seems to have rediscovered the pleasure in drawing. In multi coloured pencil drawings, she now works even longer on a richly detailed universe full of small scale life emerging from an earlier original image. The flat work almost devoid of perspective, gets its depth through the use of multiple layers of colour. In these intricate compositions it is often difficult to trace a specific idea, the original starting point or the underlying story. It is this specific indulgence of Minke by keeping on creating and losing herself in small details, she is grasping life before her own eyes, that gives her work its particular character and style. To the spectator an almost endless multi-coloured kaleidoscopic spectacle unfolds, in which the eye hardly finds any rest.

That rest can easily be found in Minke’s graphic pencil drawings. In this work just the line plays an important role. Lines in varying thickness, which len the image an enchanted and surreal quality. An ambiance which is also created by the grubby grey and the layered character if the drawing, as a result of the continuous, intensive contact with the paper. In the simplicity of this direct and typical line we find the characterizing element on which all her further work is elaborating.

Exhibitions
1992  The Laurens Church, Rotterdam
1996  Otsu Museum of History, Shiga, Japan
1999  De ontmoeting, Khan Youris, Palestina
1999  Winner K4-Award and exhibition in Beurs van Berlage, Amsterdam
1999  KunstRai, Amsterdam
2001  “Signs”, Väsby Konnsthall 2001, Stockholm, Sweden
2003  Outsider Art Fair, New York, USA
2003  “Bruut”, Gallery Herenplaats in co-operation with Showroom Mama, Rotterdam
2005  “Gek op Kunst” (mad about art), Gallery Hollandia, Vlaardingen
2006  “Who Am I”, graphic exhibition, Gallery Herenplaats Rotterdam
2006  Jubileum exhibition “15 years Herenplaats”, Gallery Herenplaats , Rotterdam
2007  “Wereld van Herenplaats”, Street Art meets Herenplaats, Gallery Herenplaats, Rotterdam
2008  “Outsider Art Fair”, New York,  USA
2008  “Stendhal syndroom, art that makes you grazy”, exhibition Gallery Herenplaats, Rotterdam
2009  “Outsider Art”, Gallery De Compagnie, Dordrecht
2010  “Outsider Art der Niederlande”, Kunsthaus Kannen Munster, Germany
2010  “Kadmium”, Delft
2010  “Outsider Art Salon”, Gallery Herenplaats, Rotterdam
2011  Exhibition Zorgcentrum Crimpenersteyn, Krimpen a/d IJssel
2011  Aix Les Bains, France
2013  GROOS, Schieblock, Schiekade, Rotterdam
2019 Vout-O-Reenee’s, London
2019 ‘Outsider Art Fair’, Paris
2019 Calvin-Morris Gallery, New York

Collections

Collection Max E. Ammann, Switzerland

Catalogues
1999  K4-Award, Beurs van Berlage, Amsterdam.
2008  Book “Stendhal syndroom, art that makes yougrazy”, 15 years Herenplaats

Award
Winner K4-Award 1999

Order
In the project Beautiful People www.beautifulpeople.nl images by Minke de Fonkert have been used for a unique coffee set.