Biography
I am Carmen van Gellekom. Even as a child I was always busy with drawing. At first this was just fun but soon enough I discovered some talent in myself.
It was at that moment that a seed had been planted that I might have more talent than I thought at first. After studying I did an entrance exam for the academy of arts. I was rejected for not being original enough. I then decided to focus on work and my drawing / painting took a backseat because of the thought that ‘I wasn’t original enough.‘.
Around my thirtieth year I started following some courses and enjoyed several years of lessons at the kunstacademie Arendonk in Belgium. I then became pregnant however and when the kids came my ‘art’ took a backseat once more and it became little more than a fun hobby.
In 2020 during the first Corona year, a lot of my work as a coach / trainer (my other field of expertise) fell away and I had a lot of time left over to take another fun art course (La Vie en Rose course with Yvon van Bergen). During this course it was mainly the intention to discover, work intuitively and try out all kinds of things. This is how I came to work with collages on rice paper. I am not the most patient person but I liked this very intensive work so much and found the final result so surprising that I wanted to continue. A nice incidental circumstance is that my enthusiasm and passion can also be seen in my paintings. The first paintings sold themselves, although that was certainly not my intention at the time. Many paintings later I keep looking outside my comfort zone in my mixed media paintings. Everything is possible so I can use my creativity to the fullest.
I hope you enjoy my creations too!
