BIOGRAPHY

Blooming and Movement in Paintings by Bella Tchicourel

What do tulips, dance and portraits have in common? They all tell the story of change, of movement and blooming, of a short duration but radiant. These are the themes of the paintings by Bella Tchicourel.

She grew up in Israel and studied Graphic art and Art history in Haifa. In 1983 she came to the Netherlands and settled in Maastricht. When she discovered that she could express herself better through painting than with graphics, she started to paint. In the first half of 2004, she made her debut with a group exhibition in The Hague followed by a solo exhibition in Maastricht.

The tulip, in all it's forms, is combined with common everyday household articles; a bucket, a fluttering curtain behind which stands a woman pensively gazing out, pieces of old tiles, a line of text, still faintly visible. The most striking aspect of her work is its transparency. A composition of see through layers gives the work depth and hints that there is more behind the scene. This suggestion is accentuated through the use of evanescent lines and expressive brush strokes. There is movement in the stillness, the story continues.

This movement is most evident in the series of paintings inspired by dance. The dancing figures appear able to continue the choreography, having only paused mid-flight for a split second.

Most striking in Tchicourels' work are the colours. Dominant deep red, clear yellow, absorbent pink, shimmering indigo and glowing aquamarine.

"These are the colours I brought with me from my youth in Israel"