November 2023 – Work in Progress
Show Me the Way
In the series ‘Show Me the Way’, Robert van de Graaf explores how to navigate through this disturbing world with some guidance given by the wisdom and philosophies of life by two saints, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and Saint Joan of Arc. He carried out research with a loose approach and drew inspiration from visits to their birthplaces in France.
Robert hopes to transmit and channel a glimpse of their wisdom and light into his artwork, while also trying to learn on a personal level during the creation process.
In his creative process he is working from internal reflection and contemplation towards outbursts of external expressions in his artworks. His artworks are also infused and inspired by his observations and documentation of their birthplaces and environments.
As he explains: “It’s not so much about me knowing a lot about the saints, but more about the internal process and the experience that even a small piece of information or a short visit brings to me. I try to transform that into artworks.“
Many of the situations and experiences from the lives of these two saints are used metaphorically in these works. The inspiration is transformed into a more abstracted language, allowing the viewer freedom of interpretation while being confronted with his internal reflections and contemplations at the same time. This interplay opens up a space for the viewer where visual impressions can start a dialogue with their emotional and spiritual experiences.
This way of expression is allowing the works to become timeless, where the wisdom and philosophies of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and Saint Joan of Arc can move freely through all courses of time and can be related and relevant to all kinds of situations in contemporary life as well.
Exploring his personal relation and connection with the spiritual world remains a strong source of inspiration for him, but always in connection with daily life and both the natural and the built world. His love of nature remains the common thread through all his artworks, he uses the landscape as a vehicle to express himself and to transmit his inspiration.
Robert has been inspired by the two Saints for a long time and wanted to dive deeper into their wisdom and philosophies. An attraction to use the two saints as the main inspiration for the series are their strong opposite lives and philosophies in life.
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux led a very private life, with a lot of internal questioning, as described in the ‘The Holy Therese of the Child Jesus. History of a Soul’ (1946). Saint Joan of Arc led a very public and loud life, in which her courageous actions have been inspired by a divine force.
Despite their differences, the two share a soul with the ability to connect to a mysterious spiritual world, where wisdom and the light rule.
Robert’s ongoing longing to the spiritual experience and inner liberation within himself are the driving forces behind his inspiration.
