Ineke de Vries

As a young girl, born an raised in Friesland, Netherlands, there were two things Ineke de Vries loved in life: art and theatre. Encouraged by her mother, who found out about a new theatre study close to her home town, Ineke started studying theatre. “I loved every aspect of it: acting, directing, writing, creating décor,” says the artist. After completing this course, Ineke decided to get another degree as an art therapist. Although the main focus was on theatre, she also partook in a minor where she dove into art and rediscovered the love she had for it as a kid.

Whilst completing this minor, looking for techniques, Ineke saw pictures on the internet of people making rubberstamps out of an eraser. Wanting to experiment herself, she bought a simple gauche and erasers and started to make stamps. Most of the time she focused on creating female faces, practicing this hobby on and off.

After finishing her studies in Art Therapy, she then also gained a degree in Teaching. Ineke then travelled and explored, and in 2017 she set up life in Australia. Whilst settling into her new life Ineke began to miss stamp making, and got all of her equipment shipped over. When her tools arrived Ineke was delighted to get back into creating, and was inspired by printmakers she discovered on Instagram. She found out about some awesome printmakers stores in Melbourne, picked up some better tools, and decided to start printmaking herself. Frida Kahlo was the first print she made, and Ineke hasn’t stopped carving since.Her practice mainly focuses on portraits. Ineke describes; “I love portraits and it might have started with that one print of Frida, because after that print so many people asked me to make a print of this person and that person. Because of that, I often created prints with (famous) portraits.” It wasn’t until she was joining a ‘printparty’ on Instagram that she started making more prints incorporating scenery. Inspired by each weeks’ prompt, Ineke would search the internet for a scene she had in her head, finding a picture that aesthetically worked ready for her to add her own touch. She still works in the same way today, even with her portraits, taking further inspiration from vintage pictures and people with a fascinating story.

Since September, Ineke has worked as a freelancer. “I would love to be able to live off my lino art work, but for now I still give theatre workshops as well,” states the printmaker. Together with a friend Ineke is renting an office which she has turned into her working space, where she hopes to host workshops too.

@ieniej.prints

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