Esther Nienhuis
'A desire to be elsewhere is the central theme of my work. I approach the experience of Unfulfilled Desire as a condition in which Heimweh (longing for the known) and Fernweh (longing for the unknown) intertwine. The urge to leave behind inevitably implies loss and farewell. I want to make the metaphorical boundary perceptible that isolates the here and now from other realities - past, future or imaginary.
In the series called Saudade I represent this boundary as a physical one. A view is shown from behind the rain-covered or sun-lit windscreen of a car. Thick drops dance over the screen or are smashed against the side, swept away by the wipers. The film of water and the reflection of the sun on the otherwise invisible glass partly deform the view. This perturbing layer is always present, in between here and elsewhere. The screen uncovers the world that is longed for and excludes it at the same time.'
- Esther Nienhuis
Dutch-born Esther Nienhuis studied Fine Arts at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague and has exhibited in Europe, the United States, Canada, Asia and Australia. She was awarded with the Dutch art prize Gasunie Kunstprijs in 2011 and in 2012 two of her works were selected for the ZomerExpo at the Gemeentenmuseum in The Hague, the Dutch equivalent to the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London.
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Saudade - Pink, 2024
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Saudade - Spring, 2024
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City Lights II, 2023
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Saudade Canada III, 2023
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Saudade V, 2022
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Tracks 2, 2018
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Tracks 1, 2018
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Borderland II, 2015
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Borderland III, 2014
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Into the Void IV, 2013
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Into the Void V, 2013
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Borderland I, 2013
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Saudade 66, 2019
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Saudade 60, 2017
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Saudade (Water II), 2017
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Saudade 50, 2015
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Some Sunny Day
Group Show 26 July - 30 August 2019 LondonInside Some Sunny Day, an exhibition celebrating the joys of summer at the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery in London, featuring artists such as Emma Haworth, Ashley Amery and Toby Burrows.Read more -
Tracks
Esther Nienhuis 4 - 29 September 2018 LondonInside Tracks, an exhibition of new works by Dutch artist Esther Nienhuis at the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery in London.Read more -
Wilderness
Group Show 1 - 23 December 2016 London“We need the tonic of wildness...At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land...Read more -
The Love That Remains
Esther Nienhuis, NYC 7 October - 9 November 2015Dutch-born Esther Nienhuis regards the desire to be elsewhere as the essential characteristic of her work. Her paintings pivot on the moment at which Fernweh (desire for unknown) and Heimweh...Read more -
Saudade
Esther Nienhuis 3 - 27 September 2014 LondonDutch-born Nienhuis regards the desire to be elsewhere as the essential characteristic of her work. Her paintings pivot on the moment at which Fernweh (desire for unknown) and Heimweh (desire...Read more