Louise Wieland
No love-hate relationship has been as tenacious as that of humans and the sun. Though essential for survival as well as having disastrous and lasting consequences for us if exposed for too long and too much. Maybe it’s due to the likeliness of my name to a certain French king, but I have often been told that the sun suits me. lovely, warm and nutritious. But only in small doses because, Louise, too much is just too much. However, I’d like to think that I am more like my grandmother. Early in her life she migrated from Indonesia to the Netherlands. A country of which she didn’t write nor spoke the language. A country of which almost no-one understood her customs and traditions. Similar to my grandma, words have never been my forté. Instead my language is spoken through images. as a way to communicate and connect with my world. When growing up she often told me stories of the past and while the tales themselves are long gone, the impression of tacit wisdom, brought about by them, have remained with me and have manifested themselves as motifs within my work.
My practice is defined by an intuitive and a holistic approach, revolving around people and the connections they make with each other, their environment, history and traditions and customs. Through my illustrations I am able to engage, dream up and give form to the fantastic worlds of others. I specifically focus on tactile illustrations and designs because I believe that the future is not completely virtual and that it is important to connect, not only with each other, but with our surroundings.
I am working with my sister Alana to achieve just that. Transgressing coventional catergories and norms, we combine the formal with the informal, the old with the new and the sister with the partner. Taking the good with the bad, the criticism with the praise, we push our practice to be the best we can be. It is in this practice where we form a bridge, between day and night, a bridge to people and to futures. It is then in the likeness of our future that we create our work. And because I am like the sun after all, I would like to share the warmth of our future with others.
Alana Wieland
How come we adore the most simple and constant phenomena in our life Nothing is more constant than the moon, but nothing holds as much intrigue and attraction either. With our gazes fixed on the night sky, what is it that we miss in front of us? That which is even more fleeting and special than the moon, that which is quiet and passes without our knowledge? What makes something memorable? How do we remember the unmemorable?
These are some of the questions central in my practice as an artist, within my illustrations I capture the nuances of everyday life and give voice to the fleeting. As someone who always has had difficulty with the haste of life, slowing down is a gift I would like to give to others. One of the ways I do this is by incorporating traditional craftsmanship into my practice, like embroidery as well as hand painting and dying. Within my work I aim for versatility and take on a reflective stance towards my topics, tracing back not only my footsteps, but also those of others.
Together with my sister Louise, we form the pillars of our practice. The connection that we share mirrors our practice. On one hand we share the age old familial blood conncection, on the other we are collegues and partners, transgressing the formal and informal, the new and the old. We are our greatest critics and our greatest fan, helping each other grow and raise one
up another. Together we create a grander set of logic, elevating the mundane to grandeur and making grand futures seem mundane. In this way, just like the sun and moon we create our own domain, and invite you to join us.