Rikki van den Berg is based in Co Cavan and has exhibited in open and juried exhibitions. Her work features in public and private collections in Ireland and abroad.
Her imagery uses aspects of nature, life and mythology. Where the subject doesn’t derive from her own personal experiences, Rikki will search for an object, shape, image or story which can hold or correspond with her own feelings. ‘I look, I find and I relate to an image and then I start working on it; creating a structure to hold my own feelings’. Painting is my real truth; sometimes it’s like my paintings are my diary; they tell me what I’m trying to say’. She frequently combines the worksurface with soft elements of textiles and papers, building up layers of material and paint,”It’s almost as if I am trying to mould the feeling onto the canvas as if I can touch it and hold on to it”. Her recent work shows more use of different materials mixed with paint to create texture and contrast. These works are part of the new series called ‘Bog-windows’ in which she tries to capture the essence of the Irish bog in relation to her childhood memories.
