Mt Evelyn artist John VanderWerf opens his first exhibition in the hills.
By Tania Martin
A PASSION for the new and unusual is now on show at the Lady Hawke Café in Mt Dandenong.
The Mt Evelyn contemporary artist John VanderWerf said he was excited about his first exhibition in the hills.
The exhibition titled Realism to Contemporary features 45 of VanderWerf’s best pieces from the past five years.
VanderWerf said he was excited about being the Artist of Month at the café and looks forward to discussing his work with art critics.
This modern artist loves experimenting with a variety of mediums using a combination of contemporary art and water colours.
His paintings aim to capture the essence of natural light and shade.
VanderWerf said that he was always looking for new ways to express his art.
In striving for the new and unusual he uses synthetic materials which give his contemporary work a three dimensional perspective.
He creates textures with acrylic paint in combination with plaster compounds, PVA and other unconventional materials such as rope, cardboard and polystyrene.
“I have always loved the idea of modern art and enjoy experimenting with new ideas,” VanderWerf said.
He has lived in Mt Evelyn for most of his life and draws his inspiration from the surrounding beauty of the Dandenongs.
Art has always been VanderWerf’s passion but he has spent most of his adult life working as a visual merchandising agent.
In this line of work he has produced many Christmas settings and nativity scenes for shopping centres.
VanderWerf has always enjoyed experimenting with painting as a hobby and has used this passion in his work with visual merchandising.
But it wasn’t until 2002 that this closet Picasso started to experiment with water colours.
Since then VanderWerf has displayed his work in various exhibitions, however he has never displayed his work in the hills. Hills art critics now have the chance to view this burgeoning artist’s work at the Lady Hawke Café, 1365 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road.
