Queen of Medes and Persians

Glastra, Siebe Wiemer

Embroidery on canvas. The embroideries lack the grand gesture of the painted canvases. They are built up from small blocks of colour in contrasting combinations that achieve a luminous effect. The emotional impact of these works is at first muted  by the precise, painstaking technique, but on closer look it becomes clear that the maker embroidered on his fickle swings of mood, the needle sometimes making calm, regular stitches and at other times darting furiously back and forth through the canvas. The outcome is a marvelous series of visionary images that sparkle with light and colour in countless shades.

The static, partitioned composition of these works is seemingly reminiscent of non-Western art forms, but it bears no relation. Glastra had scarcely if any knowledge of art history.