Weird Dreams
| Edition | Original Art |
|---|---|
| Sujet | Nude |
| Technique | Painting |
| Height | 120 cm |
| Width | 100 cm |
| Length/Depth | 2 cm |
Year of production:2024
Technique:
This painting is part of a series of works I developed towards the end of my studies at the Essen Academy of Fine Arts. I work with multiple layers of acrylic and oil paint, with the priming of the canvas forming an essential part of my process. Decisions about which areas of the canvas will remain exposed and where solid areas of colour will be created are made as early as the priming stage. The exposed areas are treated with a transparent primer, whilst several layers of white primer are applied to create rich areas of colour with intense luminosity. This means that the composition must be determined before the actual painting process begins. Glazes of fine artists’ natural resin oil paints are then applied to these prepared primer layers, deepening and intensifying the colour effect.
A distinctive feature of my artistic practice is my intense focus on the brushstroke. I experiment with different types of brushes, search markets for unusual brush shapes, and systematically investigate paint application, paint quantity and pressure on the canvas. My aim is to visibly transfer the specific shape of the brush hairs onto the canvas during the painting process. Where the expressive brushstrokes become visible, the raw canvas remains recognisable through the transparent primer. This creates a tension between openness and density.
In the painting *Weird Dreams*, an additional technique was employed. To create the tile-like texture, I applied vinyl masking tape to the painted surface, which was then carefully removed once the painting was complete. This creates a break in the painted surface, revealing the canvas’s textile texture beneath the layer of paint.
Shipping:
The work is shipped stretched on a stretcher frame – including a certificate of authenticity and a signature on the reverse.
Maria Pantagoutsou
Speaking
about her artistic practice, she says: “In recent years, I have been exploring painting in depth. In doing so, the materiality of painting has become particularly important to me: the brushstroke, the canvas and the direct handling of paint. I am especially interested in how much the trace of the brush itself can reveal. The brushstroke lends the works a graphic character reminiscent of linear hatching.
I experiment with different types of brushes and explore the application of paint, the amount of paint and the pressure applied to the canvas. I navigate between the lightness of the brushstroke and the opacity of dense areas of colour. The expressive brushwork on the beige, raw canvas enters into a dialogue with dense spaces of colour; transparency meets opacity. The veiling of the textile fabric by paint creates a space of its own for its revelation. Priming the canvas is an essential part of my process. It is at this stage that I decide which areas will remain exposed and where dense areas of colour will be created. The composition is determined before I begin painting, yet there remains scope for spontaneous changes during the working process.
I develop
my motifs from drawings, my sketchbook and my personal photo archive. The landscapes of my homeland, Greece, are among my most important sources of inspiration: the sea, the rocks, the vegetation, but also architectural structures – from ancient ruins to the urban density of Athens. Architectural elements such as columns are directly linked to the body in my works. They change shape, become soft or merge with organic forms such as hair or trees. This creates transitions between architecture, the body and nature.
My exploration of the female body is particularly intense. I deliberately depict it outside conventional ideals of beauty and challenge normative images of femininity. My artistic practice thus becomes an act of resistance against stereotypical body images and against silence."
Education2021–2025: Studied Painting/Graphic Art at the HBK Essen
2025: Bachelor of Fine Arts under Markus Vater and Nicola Staatlich
Since 2025: Studying Graphic Design at TU Dortmund under Bettina Van Haaren
Awards and Scholarships
10/2023 – 10/2024: Germany Scholarship 2023/24, BMBF
Resid
encies
2026
:
Artistic
residency and final exhibition on the theme ‘The Other’, ArToll Art Laboratory, Bedburg-Hau
Exhibitions
2025
: ‘Social…?’ group exhibition, Maschinenhalle Zeche Scherlebeck, Herten
2-6-34, Group exhibition, Bürgerbahnhof Dorsten
;
‘Scissors
, Stone, Paper’, HBK Essen Alumni Network, BBK Kunstforum, Düsseldorf
; ‘Global Colours’, group exhibition, Gallery Café-Artists, Düsseldorf
; Degree Show March 2025, graduates’ exhibition, HBK Essen, Essen Campus
2023
‘Grey These Days’, pub (HSW Wuppertal), group exhibition, Wuppertal
WOGA Exhibition, Wuppertal Open Galleries and Studios, group exhibition, Wuppertal
Contemporary
Art Ruhr (C.A.R.), group exhibition, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen
Something in Between, group exhibition, Kunsthaus Mettmann, MettmannWe
Identities, group exhibition, Industriehalle, Wuppertal Barmen
