Katja van Strijk
As Art Ambassador Manager at Royal Talens, Katja van Strijk travels the world giving workshops and courses for artists. She is currently doing this online as well. With her warm and inspiring personality, she knows how to strike the right artistic note.
Her workshops and art lectures bring Katja in contact with passionate painters all over the world, from amateurs to experienced professionals.
“My work as a painter, product expert and social media/content marketing specialist gives me the opportunity to meet and form close bonds with people from all different countries. That is a great privilege. You also learn about their culture and traditions. I am very aware of diversity and welcome everyone, regardless of their cultural background, religion, ethnicity or economic status.”
With her Art Mentoring program, she helps artist to make significant changes in their art career.
Biography:
Katja van Strijk was born 1973 in Zofingen, Switzerland. As a daughter of Italian immigrants with a strong bond to her family abroad she frequently visited her family in Sicily. Through her Italian uncle Piero Pistone, who was an oil painter she developed her passion for art. At an early age she began to experiment with different mediums and painting techniques.
However, with increasing maturity she focused more on her career. After achieving her commercial diploma, she studied at the Translations School in Zürich. She fluently speaks German, English, French, Italian and Spanish. After her studies she worked for 8 years as a Product Manager in the marketing department at an IT-Distributer.
With the birth of her children, she went back to her artistic roots and started to paint again. Through the shifted focus on her family, she decided to designate her time to the upbringing of her children and thus left her job. She opened a painting school at her home that she ran from 2005 to 2016. Additionally, she started to work as a freelancer giving workshops and technical advice to artists and art shops for Royal Talens, a Dutch manufacturer of art materials. In the beginning this only took place in Switzerland, until her occupation at Royal Talens expanded to her current position as a Technical Adviser for Fine Art products and Art Ambassador Manager which includes international projects.
The artworks of Katja van Strijk are full of matter, rich and elaborated, showing exquisite combinations of colours carrying through one always present texture, which she harmonizes with drawing. Her painting are showing us an open dialogue, a wide range of possibilities.
Museums:
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, NL, Contest “Long Live Rembrandt”, July-Sept. 2019
Museum of Modern Art Soumaya, Rodin Show, Mexico City, August 2015
Exhibitions/Art Fairs/Live Painting:
Art Week Beirut, Sept. 2019
Patchings Festival, UK-Nottingham 2019
Int. Watercolour Festival, I-Fabriano, April 2019
Creative World, D-Frankfurt, January 2019
Int. Art Fair, Beirut, September 2018
Design Fair Formex, S-Stockholm, August 2018
Art Festival, Ljubliana - Slovenia, August 2018
Patchings Festival, UK-Nottingham, July 2018
Int.Watercolour Festival, I-Fabriano, May 2018
Skrepka Expo, Ru-Moscow, March 2018
CAA College Art Association, US-Los Angeles, February 2018
Creative World, Live-Painting, D-Frankfurt, January 2018
Design Fair, Live-Painting, No-Oslo, January 2018
Intern. Watercolor Festival, Ru-Moscow, Lecture Modern Watercolor, October 2017
Art Ljubliana, Slo-Ljubliana, September 2017
Design-Fair Formex, S-Stockholm, August 2017
Skrepka Expo, Ru-Moskow, March 2017
Design Fair, No-Oslo, January 2017
Creativworld, D-Frankfurt, January 2017
Live Painting, Montreux Jazz Festival 50th, Nestlé/Nescafé Dolce Gusto, July 2016
NAMTA Fair, US-Houston, March 2016
Museum of Modern Art Soumaya, Rodin Show, Mexico City, August 2015
Exposition Don Rap, Cordoba, Veracruz, (MX) Nov. - Jan 2016
Patchings Festival, Live-Painting, Nottingham(UK) June 2015
Creativworld, D-Frankfurt, January 2015
MTV Live Painting, Juli 2012+2013, Blue Balls Festival CH-Luzern
Nestlé, CH-Orbe, März - Mai 2010
SOMETIMES AMUSING, SOMETIMES FULL OF MYSTERY!
Source of Inspiration
I remember the first time I thought about cultural diversity. It began with my art trip to Mexico City, which was my first intercontinental trip ever.
Beautiful colourful painted houses, cheerful music audible in the streets, laughing people everywhere. What a huge difference to my beloved home country Switzerland, but so incredible similar in cultural tradition and values as my Italian origins.
Diversity awareness means for me one’s ability to embrace the uniqueness of each individual regardless the different cultural background, religious belief, ethnicity, age, gender and not to forget the economic status.
I consider myself very fortunate for having the chance to get to know through my job as Art Ambassador manager, not only different countries, but equally important for me, the possibility to meet local people and become acquainted with their culture and tradition.
What more can I ask as source of inspiration?