ART2WEAR
Mij name is Marijke van Welzen.

Under the label art2wear I make wearable art: clothing and accessories with a story to tell.
Textile has always been my medium, it lends itself to infinite possibilities of expression.
I love the tactile aspect ( to feel the different textures, soft, rough, hairy, smooth etc.) the flexibility, the unlimited colour range and the visual texture ( shiny, muted, glittering etc.). I usually work very intuitively, sometimes I use a Mandala drawing I made for inspiration.
Daily life is very hectic, I’m a school teacher for 4 days a week, my art helps me to balance my life, it gives me a way to escape everyday life, relax my mind.
I’m inspired by Art, other artists, fabric, fibres, fashion, people, fairy-tales, the natural world.
I like to participate in contests, I pick the ones with themes that inspire me. When I read the theme it has to be catchy at once, I start thinking about it, doing research, reading articles, looking at images at Google etc. An idea comes to my mind, has to whirl around in my head for some time , then I start working. The rest is very intuitive, once I start, it works like a kind of puzzle, I find another piece, or I just have to wait until some more pieces turn up. I never know exactly beforehand what the end result will look like.
I use all sorts of surface design techniques. Starting with many tiny pieces of fabric or felt and yarn, and colourful machine-threads I 'paint' my designs. I like to combine this with techniques like stencilling, stamping and needle-felting. Beads, ribbons, lace and anything else I think I can use, finish the piece. Lately I have been experimenting with images scanned and manipulated in the computer and printed directly on fabric. I am constantly learning and my work evolves as I find new images in my imagination and develop the techniques to create them in cloth
I also work on commission. Each garment is tailor-made for that particular client.
I keep in mind wishes like favourite colour, design, shape etc. All garments are unique, I never copy a piece. I have won several prizes with my garments. I try to have expositions regularly.

I love sharing my techniques with others. We work in small groups, the sewing and needle-felting machines are ready and waiting. I am available by request to teach workshops in my studio or on location.