Association for Art and Culture Hüttener Berge eV
Artist interviews
Interview with Patricia Maciolek
Author: Petronella Luiting - 2018
Why did you become an artist? Or when did it become clear to you that you were an artist?
I have always been creative and I always wanted to be creative in my career too. For a long time, the written word was the focus of my job as a journalist. Today I work almost exclusively as a painter.
Does art help us learn more about our life?
Absolutely! If only because you're constantly questioning your art and everything that goes with it. It's a big topic.
Who do you make your art for?
For me as well as for others.
Is it more work or fun? Does making art make you happy? What is difficult about making art?
Work that is fun. And therefore something that makes you happy and that many people no longer have today.
For me, three things are difficult about “making art”: letting creativity run free and not being put off by a blank canvas, for example, backing up creativity with the necessary craftsmanship so that the works do not appear amateurish and then finding ways in order to be able to make a living from one's own work.
What does art mean to you personally? Can you describe what good art is to you? Can you describe what bad art is to you? Is there a work of art in your life that has particularly impressed you?
For me, art means the freedom to creatively develop emotions, thoughts, ideas, criticism and much more or to experience them in the works of others and thus being forced to constantly change perspective.
Art should or must not do anything. It is entirely up to the artist how he wants to convey his form of creativity, for which he needs at least a minimum level of talent and a certain level of skill. For me, there is no such thing as good or bad art. However, there is art that is simply poorly executed.
There is no one work of art that has particularly impressed me - but there are always some that I find simply amazing and that I wish I had the talent to create something like that.
How would you describe your style?What experiences influence your artistic work?Do you have your motifs in mind when you pick up the brush? How often do you paint?
Phew. No, I don't think I can actually describe my style. At most I can say that in all forms of expression it is an attempt to depict things as vividly as possible using painterly means.
I am influenced by personal as well as socio-political things and my surroundings. This is also reflected in my work. On the one hand, it is representational and even photorealistic, so I already have a motif in mind before I start painting. On the other hand, I like working abstractly, so the motifs develop over the course of the painting process and I only realise afterwards that I actually had a motif in mind but was not aware of it.
Do you have a certain talent or did you acquire your skills through hard work and diligence? Are you sometimes unsure about your art?
I certainly have a certain talent. But to be able to implement it the way I want, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication. This learning process will never stop - a wonderful side aspect of artistic work. And yes, I am unsure, but that also promotes the learning process.
What has enriched your creativity over the years? Have you gotten better over the years? How do you see your future artistic work, where is the journey taking you?
I am particularly enriched by the way other artists work and what they do. There are always things that both fascinate and inspire me.
I do think that I have become "better" over the years, although "better" is a term that is open to interpretation. If I look at it purely from a craft perspective, then definitely. It's difficult to classify something like that creatively, and therefore also where the journey is going. I can't say.
Who do you do exhibitions for?
Why do people do exhibitions? I don't think it helps me as an artist if I only paint for myself and no one else engages with me and my art. And an artist doesn't live on air and paint alone, and of course I want to sell my work.
Does our society need art?
Absolutely! It opens minds, makes you think, delights, inspires, unleashes creative streams of thought and, and, and.
Do you need information about the context of art to understand it? Or can art just be beautiful?
Art can simply be beautiful and interesting!
