The former cinema of the old city archive in Rotterdam-West is home to Root Gallery. Sunlight pours into the large, industrial-looking space through dozens of windows. It reflects off the mirrors in Quinda Verheul’s sculptures and dances happily across the dozens of reflective, round discs incorporated in Freerk Wilbers’ kinetic artworks.
Founded in 2018 by Yvonne de Jong, Root Gallery is participating in the KunstRAI for the sixth time this year. The gallery will show works by Karen van de Vliet, Lisette Schumacher, Saïd Kinos, Quinda Verheul, Donald Schenkel and Jan Kuhlemeier (solo). Kuhlemeier is fascinated by the colors and movements of nature: waves breaking on sandbanks, gusts of wind playing with a body of water. In abstract paintings, he brings his experience of these natural processes to life.
Artist Karen van de Vliet also draws her inspiration from nature, but particularly from the process of weathering. Using water and acrylic paint, she tries to recreate this phenomenon on her canvases, giving the water room to find its own way across the canvas and interact with the different colors of paint.
Curious to know more about what Root Gallery will show at this year’s KunstRAI? Watch the double interview with Yvonne de Jong and Karen van de Vliet below (Dutch).
Image on the left: Karen van de Vliet, I Wonder What, 2022, mixed acrylic paint on cotton, framed, 75 x 64 cm.
