On the road

Danielle Kwaaitaal

Following her studies at the fashion academy, DANIELLE KWAAITAAL completed her studies at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam in 1991. With her graduation project Bodyscapes, she was well ahead of her time. Kwaaitaal, who has been experimenting with the computer program Paintbox since the 1980s, is a pioneer in the field of digitally manipulated photography. Her project certainly did not go unnoticed, as the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam (Municipal Museum) immediately purchased a work from the series.International recognition followed shortly thereafter. Kwaaitaal's work could be seen in many solo and group exhibitions. In 2017 and 2018, flowers continued to be a significant theme in her work, as she worked exclusively on her underwater still lifes series BLACK OUT and FLORILEGIUM. In her underwater series ULTRAVIOLET (2020), Kwaaitaal goes in a completely new artistic direction. Flowers have given way to glass vases and ceramic jars. She focuses on her choice of the shapes and contours of the objects, followed by her choice of materials; transparent or solid. We can see subtle shades of light and dark, translucent and opaque. These works are created with a true painter's eye. With Ultravoilet, Kwaaitaal appears to move further away from her initial medium, photography. Danielle Kwaaitaal's works are part of several collections of museums and companies in the Netherlands and abroad. Multiple works from the Florilegium and Ultravoilet series were recently acquired for the extensive art collection of the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.