Acrylic Painting
Denise Hojdyssek
Denise is an abstract painter with modernist influences working primarily with acrylic paint to create interesting shapes that interact with each other. She uses a combination of shape, colour and texture to convey a mood.
Artist Profile
Denise is a German born artist based in Adelaide. Denise’s work is heavily inspired by mid-century design and the Bauhaus period. These design aesthetics are featured prominently in her use of clean lines, shapes, and harmonious composition. The Bauhaus period was introduced to Denise by her German father, who is also an artist.
The Bauhaus movement covered a wide range of disciplines. For Denise, this particular period celebrates the freedom to overlap art and design. She has a passion for both. Travel is where she looks for inspiration in texture, colour, and experience.
Denise first completed a BA Visual Arts Degree at the University of South Australia and majored in photography, and she later completed a year of Design at the Design Centre, Enmore, Sydney. She worked for many years in various creative fields such as visual merchandising, styling, make-up artistry and photography. The visual skills she acquired, such as a keen eye for colour, shapes, and composition, are clearly expressed in her current paintings.
Artist Interview
What medium do you work with, and why have you chosen them?
Currently my main medium that I use in my paintings is acrylic paint. Because my work involves several layers of building up of the surface in paint, acrylic is suitable for my practice because it is quick drying and enables me to work at a suitable pace. To explore my concepts I use collage which involves painting lots of sheets of paper to then cut up and explore shape building.
How does your artwork get from initial concept to exhibition stage?
My artistic process involves exploring different colour ranges and playing with shapes that I have cut out and placed into collages which will later develop into paintings. I love to discover textures, shapes and colours that move and excite me and I will often take many photos to add to my visual journal for reference, especially when I am travelling. Later in the studio, time is spent freely drawing or working with collage as a way of loosening up and developing various abstract shapes that speak to me. I continue to refer to these images for inspiration. My paintings involve a long process of building up painted surfaces with abstract shapes and transparent washes, then sanding them down. I like to work on canvas or wood.The process is repeated over and over again to create the texture and image that I have visualised for the final artwork.
Can you tell us a little more about your creative working environment/studio?
I have a home studio in the front of our 1900’s Bluestone Cottage on the coast. I generally work 5 days a week in the studio. I will often start the day by taking our dog for a walk along the beach once everyone has gone. Then I head into the studio with a coffee in hand. Lists are good for me as they help me achieve all my goals. I divide up time with checking emails, website, e letters to subscribers and practical artwork making. There is always music like jazz playing, or a podcast on the go. Afternoons in the studio are the nicest as the light streams through the window.
Career Highlights
- Denise's artwork has been featured in Belle, Inside Out and Adore Home magazine.
- In 2022, she was showcased in Melbourne by Fenton & Fenton at The Affordable Art Fair with other selected emerging artists.
- Denise was a shortlisted finalist for Fenton + Fenton’s Rising Talent 2021 in Melbourne, and that same year, Adore Home Magazine mentioned her as an emerging artist to have on your radar.
