Adriaan Marin: At The Wunderwall Antwerp

Adriaan Marin's paintings are teeming with fantastic creatures that blend in with his interpretation of reality. Adriaan is not looking for a contemporary trend but does what he has to do from an inner urge. The chaos of the present is told as it bubbles up in his mind. The works take shape during drawn preliminary studies. When the design of a work is finished, the idea is reinterpreted as a painting. While painting, he gives himself complete freedom to add new storylines to his original idea.

 

Adriaan imagines mental desires in which he also leaves reality. What he can't put into words always finds its way into an image. Always looking for the green of the grass and for the flight of the birds. A metaphor for his personal struggle with urban unrest and the constant stream of changing thoughts.

 

Adriaan discovered his love for drawing at the age of sixteen, when he uncontrollably  scribbled on his homework and tests. After graduating high school in Mechanical Techniques, he chose for drawing and opted for a study in printmaking where he eventually obtained his master's degree in etching in 2019. Etching, the feeling of ink, as black as soot, on the bright white paper, made his heart beat faster. But the simple ballpoint pen was also a drawing favorite. 

 

During these years of drawing and the study of printmaking Adriaan had always dreamed of painting, depicting his images in color and paint. In the summer of 2021, he finally took the step to focus on this new technique. After etching and drawing, he has now found the same love for painting.