Magical, serene, enchanted and contentment. This is what I feel when I look at Hiske Bain’s work “Isolation in Comfort”, (2020), acrylic on canvas, 24 x 19 inches. Bain says “I like to paint a positive reality” and this is a world I’d like to live in or at least be able to visit right now—lush and calming. Bain says of this work, “I call my art ‘Positive Art’, bringing out a creative energy a positive side of life as in new growth after a fire. I believe that life is a Shamanic journey bringing difficulties here to test us, however I always come out at the other side with more strength, faith and healing, a rebirth which I express through my art.”
I was honored to be asked by Renée Philips of The Healing Power of Art & Artists to give a Special Recognition Art Award for “The Spirit of Resilience”, an online art exhibition through November 4, 2020, showcasing a variety of works of art by 80 artists from around the world. The Healing Power of Art & Artists (HPAA) is a community of artists, writers and advocates. Their mission is “We believe art is a powerful catalyst for positive change in the world.” This is something I believe in whole-heartedly—my motto is “changing the world through art”. HPAA was founded by Renée Phillips, artists’ advocate & mentor, and she is also Founder, Director & Curator of Manhattan Arts International.
“The Spirit of Resilience” shows a wide variety of works of art by artists from around the world that demonstrate the spirit and power of resilience—in the human experience and in the natural world. I reviewed over 100 works but kept coming back to Bain’s work again and again, it really resonated with me, particularly in this time of political angst and a world pandemic. Her body of work is based in Magical Realism and I am strongly attracted to the Surrealistic aspects. Her work reflects on the beauty and goodness in small things and quiet moments.
But before viewing the art and having just read the prospectus, I wrote, “I will look for art that manifests the experience and concept of resilience—either personal or universal, reflecting on hardships, triumphs, challenges, despair, connection and small miracles. What has tested you? What lessons have you learned and what lessons do you want to share? I am drawn to art that is visually arresting, provocative and emotionally charged. I lean towards art that is focused on the human condition and social justice themes with works that evoke a visceral response. The work should challenge the viewer on issues facing society today and to inspire reflective thought and dialogue with the intention to “change the world through art”, i.e. positive change. The artist should demonstrate a unique voice and style and have perfected their craft.” Hiske Bain’s work fit this description to a “t”.
In corresponding with Hiske, I asked (paraphrased):
KG: As we are talking, covid19 continues to ravage the world. How has this crisis been for you?
HB: Not too drastic really, I’ve gotten a lot of work done, saved heaps of money and since I am mostly on my own anyway and like it! It does not make too much difference.
KG: Is there anything else you have recently added to your art practice due to the pandemic and shutdown?
HB: I have had many paintings in online exhibitions, as it is hard to think of an exhibition in a gallery at the moment.
KG: What are you working on now?
HB: Actually I am working on another covid painting for an online exhibition.
KG: How has your work as a healer and teacher all over the world influenced your work?
HB: As a healer and teacher I feel compelled to paint positive art work, paintings that hopefully give energy and joy to the viewer and express the beauty and meaning of everyday things—a looking glass into nature, life, all things we take for granted and try to destroy!
KG: Who are some of your favorite artists? Any that have especially influenced your work or ones that you just love?
HB: Dali, Max Ernst all the surrealist painters past and present and also Magical Realism is a big influence on my work.
KG: Tell me more about how you connect with spiritual magic and how do you incorporate that into your work?
HB: I visualize a better outcome and use that as a ritual with color and subject matter in my paintings.
KG: Where do the visions for your work come from, or rather how do they appear to you? As a whole piece from a dream, in meditation, or do you sit down to paint and they unfold over time?
HB: It depends what is happening around me, I can be watching a movie or the news, be in nature, talking to somebody and then something bubbles out of my subconscious.
KG: Can you expand on your statement: “My inspiration is nature, dreams, fleeting moments of memory, different places, cultures and people”
HB: Some of my passions are psychology and history, so I like to experience and learn and fully know the how and why of things and what is going on.
KG: Lastly, can you tell me more about the woman in “Isolation in Comfort”, is the woman reading a book or clutching something…
HB: The woman is happily relaxing reading another history book on her iPad.
There is a deep magic, with worlds waiting to be explored and dreams to interpret in Bain’s work. Her lush body of work includes landscapes, figurative and still-life, all with a dreamy, candy color hue. Sweet but never saccharin, fantastical dreamscapes that take you to another world. A world of humor and hope, and as an activist curator focused on themes of social justice, we really need this right now.
See the exhibition here
After finishing her formal education in The Hague, Hiske attended the De Haagse Academie voor Beeldende Kunst, followed by De Haagse Vrije Academie and then to London UK where she went on to study in The Regent College of Art. The artist has traveled, lived and studied extensively throughout Europe and Asia. After having lived in Paris, London, New York, and Antwerp, she took up residence in Australia where she now lives and maintains a studio on the North Coast.
