M E E T T H E A R T I S T
C O N T A C T (in California)
Ute Merbitz
P.O. Box 2630
Malibu, CA 90265
U.S.A.
Email: ute@power.net
E D U C A T I O N
Freie Universität Berlin: Comparative Literature, Psychology
Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universität Frankfurt: Art History
B I O G R A P H Y
Born in Mannheim, Germany.
Grew up in Germany near
Influences
Thinking differently about painting through the digital experience, using a digital camera to collect visual material, merging images, working with photographs to create digital collages.
California: The California climate, the intensity of the light, being surrounded by desert landscapes close to a huge ocean certainly had a big impact on choice of subject, color and material.
Many paintings are abstract "compositions" with recognizable elements, often flowers or landscapes.
Berlin: Looking at art, architecture, sculpture, the big city, people, man-made objects ... looking for the exceptional, beautiful - and looking at crumbling walls and old buildings.
Southern France: The beauty and elegance that is inherent in the french culture, it's own visual language.
Drawing and painting from life. Spontaneous impressions.
BLUE BARN DOOR ARTSTUDIO
Westerwaldstr. 13
56414 Dreikirchen
Germany
Email: ute@power.net
Currently restoring an old barn in Germany as a place for Art. We plan to be open during the summer months!
The barn is located about one hour drive north of Frankfurt and a little less than two hours south of Cologne.
Pictures taken in the early morning hours on a sunny day in june.
The color of the barn door(s) is a greyish pigeon blue - in particular on rainy days.
Dad helping with the restauration of the former horse stable
Blue Barn Door
Artstudio
SUMMER
This Project is currently UNDER CONSTRUCTION!
Lots of dust when sweeping the floor. The swallow nests were already there when we started the gallery project and I decide to keep them intact.
First the walls simply get brushed to remove dirt and old spiderwebs. Then painting of the walls with white color can begin. We are using real slaked lime made from pit lime. It's the white color they used on walls of stables and houses before the advent of modern materials. Slaked lime has antifungal properties and absorbs moisture.
It's more work than expected to restore an old stable and convert it into a place for art exhibitions. Dad is helping with the renovation effort.
These walls are textures, almost as if the walls themselves want to be paintings. Simple application of white also removes some of the old charm. So the red brick stones have to be made visible again.
Four baby barn swallows are in the nest now!
A barn swallow pair flew in and out through the open window and door of the old horse stable, then they disappear for a day. Suddenly the two swallows are back, very busy and twittering loudly (thefreesoundproject). Now they are breeding in one of the nests.
It was not easy to shoot a picture of the inside of their nest so close to the ceiling, but the blurry photo shows there are 2 eggs.
WINTER
2010 01 01 : Staedel Museum:
Visiting the Botticelli Exhibition in Frankfurt/Main today.
Botticelli paintings photograph exceedingly well, as can be seen in the large exhibition poster on the outside wall of the Staedel museum.
Botticelli and his workshop (re)invented the first sexy female nude of their time. The idealized model was Simonetta Vespucci.