Art Office

Bima Engels paints extensively. He fills canvases with shapes, lines and colors until they start to dance. In this way he draws his spectators into his dynamic landscapes. He likes to paint in large format. During corona he applied for a subsidy to paint an experiment. It would be an even larger canvas: 2,50 by 2,70 meters. And instead of the abstract, landscape play of shapes, this time he painted human figures, spectators who stare in the direction of a blue vortex. A star in the middle.

Engels: 'The canvas represents an adventure story, not a travel report in images. The painting is a gathering around a clear center. I refer to art and especially to the poetry of Apollinaire, painter and poet. But also to dada. I like poetry a lot. The star in the middle of the canvas represents a special place that you don't just come to. That could be Apollinaire's Paris, which we couldn't travel to during the corona crisis. The painting is a combination of visual elements. I had no idea what the outcome would be when I started. I was inspired by Gulliver's Travels, by the idea of ​​imaginary journeys, of adventures actually. When you stand in front of the canvas as a spectator, you are drawn in. In this way you become an extra and part of the performance. There is a man in a bowler hat, which I refer to the painter René Daniëls, who painted a magnificent portrait of Apollinaire, a very beautiful canvas. I took that from him. Apollinaire is a very mysterious figure, Daniëls painted him as a kind of showmaster.'

What did the standstill of the world during the lockdown mean to you?
'With the PPR subsidy, I was able to buy materials and had the peace of mind to work on them. It was a strange time. It was difficult financially, but it was very nice to be able to paint this canvas. My production is never that high, for example I made two paintings in 2021. I had a certain image in my head for a while. And it was ready just in time for the Groot Atelier, the open studio weekend organized by Stichting Droom en Daad, to encourage artists.'

What were the reactions to your canvas?
'The reactions during the studio weekend were very positive, poet Miguel Santos wrote a poem based on the painting.'

What do the human figures on your canvas mean?
'The work actually surprised me, because of their presence. Usually I paint structures in motion. This canvas is quite narrative, without really telling a story. Maybe it's because I saw few people during the pandemic that there are human figures in it. At the moment I paint exclusively abstract again. Who knows, maybe those people will come back to my work someday. I don't rule it out, it's always exciting what will happen in my work.'

What are your plans for the future?
'I'm going to make plans for exhibitions again. When you see that others are busy, it gives you energy. People are buying more art again. That also happened during corona, but then I mainly sold watercolors in small format, online. I lasted for two years, now it's starting to run a bit again. Fortunately, we can now travel again. I am also working on an exhibition about my own work and that of my father, who was also an artist in Rotterdam. His work differs from mine, but there are overlaps: the use of color for example. English in Rotterdam will be called the exhibition.' 

Temporary work contribution PPR

Om artists during the corona lockdowns to help maintain their professional practice, launched CBK Rotterdam de Ttemporary Wacknowledgment Production, Presentation en Research (PPR) about this visual artists can are signed up at CBK Rotterdam. Divided into two rounds in 2020 in 2021 finally received bijna two hundred artists a contribution. The result of the temporary work contribution is bundled in a magazine in which we, together with a few artists, look back and look forward. This is one of fifteen interviews from the magazine.

Text: Machteld Leij
Photos: Mark Bolk