Interview with Sonja Kalb

The love of art and the need to express myself through colours and compositions have always accompanied me. Photographs, nature drawings, nude and portrait painting developed while training as a textile and design engineer have helped me develop handwriting that is as precise artistically as it is sound on an artisanal level. Like many artists of the 20th and 21st century, I have turned from figurative painting first to collage and then to abstraction.
I reduce to the essential: shapes and the substance of colours. My means of expression are surface structures and textures, strong contrasts, at times expressive colour choices and play with colour surfaces that partly conceal, partly reveal what lies beneath. In order for the complexity and optical depth of the paintings to become perceptible, parts of the canvas remain open. To apply layers, I use paintbrushes and palette knives, oil crayons, pencil and pigments.
Travelling is my source of inspiration: I am guided by memories of a place’s colours, its nature, particular patterns of light and shadow. My artistic practice is a painted response to the disrespect of the environment and the fast pace of the increasingly digitalized world; an expression of my desire that we develop respect for the surrounding world and that we recognize the urgency of a sustainable protection of nature. The paintings’ titles refer to those sources of inspiration, subject areas and concerns. More importantly, though, my colour worlds are meant to invite viewers to go on a sensuous journey of discovery and to inspire thoughts and ideas of their own.

How would you describe yourself and your artwork?

I am open-minded and have positive thinking. A friend of mine would say:” she is an artist full of energy with a profound spirit and enthusiasm for the beauty in the world.”

This is also reflected in my energetic works.

How do you go about beginning a new piece? Do you have an idea already in mind, or do you start working with materials or sketches to find the departure point?

I start with inspiration; when I am in the flow, I let my vision and emotion guide me. A lot of my positive energy flows into my artwork.

When do you think your most prolific time of the day or week is?

Ideas I get over the whole day and night when I speak with people,  see something in nature or on my photos from my travels in foreign countries or due to a dream. I love painting at night because it is quiet, no phone, no noise from outside and a cosmos for me and my work. When I am in the flow, I forget the time around me and work with little sleep.

What is a barrier you as an artist overcame? Is there anything that enabled you to develop your work as an artist in your life?

I have always painted, but I did not dare to start my own business and worked in distribution and marketing for well-known designers. After many successful years, I then had  the courage to dedicate myself only to my passion for art. I overcame my fears to be an artist! 

Did you have an idea of what you wanted to create right from the beginning?

I have always loved going to museums. When I was at school, once a week I went to the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart to listen to lectures on the most important artists of the eras. We would all sit in front of a painting and the art historian would talk passionately about the painter and his time. It was so impressive for me. I was fascinated by Picasso, by his development of his different styles due to the happenings of the time. My goal was abstraction. I was very interested in analytical and synthetic cubism, represented in particular by Braque and Picasso. I chose the way like many artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, I have progressed beyond figurative painting to collages and from there to abstraction.  The second objective was to give the observer energy, positive vibes and to find their own world in my paintings.

What is the meaning or creative inspiration for your work? We are curious what the narrative or story is to what you are producing?

People just go for walks with their mobile phones; some even sit at a nice dinner with their loved one with their mobile phone. I would like people to recognise the beauty of nature again and to respect it.

In general is my creative inspiration the beauty of the world and a large part is the nature.  My artistic practice is a painted response to the disrespect of the environment and the fast pace of the increasingly digitalized world; an expression of my desire that we develop respect for the surrounding world and that we recognize the urgency of a sustainable protection of nature. 

The paintings’ titles refer to those sources of inspiration, subject areas and concerns. More importantly, though, my colour worlds are meant to invite viewers to go on a sensuous journey of discovery and to inspire thoughts and ideas of their own. 

Besides your artworks, are there any other things in life that your voice as an artist may consider vital or valuable? What makes you joyful and creative, in other words?

Art and culture, travelling to foreign countries to get to know other cultures, but also good conversations and discussions with friends about current topics. A beautifully laid table with a delicious meal with dear people. I love to cook myself. I love to sit by the sea or take a walk in the forests to clear my head and get new impulses.

Are there any exhibitions or places where people can see these beautiful creations in person soon? Anything on the horizon?

After a group exhibition in the beautiful Grand Palais Ephèmère in Paris will be an exhibition “Abstract Landscape”at Galerie Kellermann. Works by Bernd C. Dietrich, Stephi Friedrich , Angela Glajcar, Sonja Kalb, Jérémy Lenoir, Alberto Saka, Sascha Nordmeyer, Reiner Seliger, David Speybrouk.

I am represented by Galerie Kellermann Düsseldorf and Galerie Heidefeld & Partner in Krefeld. Since 2021 I also work together with Monat Gallery in Madrid.

In September 2022 there will be a group exhibition at the Metropolitan Art Museum in Tokyo. I hope that it can take place this year, because it has already been postponed three times. There are many plans but I don't want to talk about them because we have learned that many things can be postponed.

Website: https://sonjakalb.com