"The painting feels distant in a way like it’s not my own anymore."
- Gijs van Lith
Color, shape, line, gesture, composition and texture are at the center of the young oeuvre of Gijs van Lith. You can find subtle visual hints in his work that look like a foot, finger, body, or a landscape. This resurfaces through a vigorous process of painting and repainting where rough and careful consideration mingles. His works are carefully conceived stackings of analytically painted surfaces. Raw emotion and simplicity serve to reinforce the central themes of joy and maternal connection. Colors are dynamites softly exploding. “Intuition and mood are my brushes and that’s what gets my engine going. I let the progress and my hand take me and I’ll see a few months later where I’ve ended up“. Van Lith’s process slows down not just because the thick oil-paint needs time to dry. It also enables Van Lith to develop the painting better, “it creates a sort of distance that gives my clarity and the freedom to see what to do next or when it’s finished. “The works playfully distort our expectations and invite us in, to look further, closer and spend some time with them. To go beyond the color and the powerful marks and gestures. When spending time with them the paintings open-up or open you up. Here you can really discover and experience the subtlety, joy and depth.
YOUR WORK OFTEN EXPLORES THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN CONSCIOUS INTENTION AND SPONTANEOUS GESTURE, PARTICULARLY THROUGH YOUR DYNAMIC USE OF MATERIALS AND LAYERING TECHNIQUES. HOW DO YOU NAVIGATE THE BALANCE BETWEEN CONTROL AND INTUITION IN YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS, DOES THIS TENSION MANIFEST IN THE FINAL PIECE?
My mind needs to be clear and the painting needs to feel distant, so I can approach it with an objective eye. The process is improvised and I react to what's in front of me, how can I make this fit, and feel ‘right’. Then and only then I can make a decision what to paint, repaint, remove or overpaint. Layers, lines and surfaces then appear and leftover lines and surfaces rise to the top and become the new prominent visual conversation on the surface. The composition and overall vibe and feeling is the core, the most important. Otherwise, I might get enchanted and seduced by the pretty parts or details of the painting instead.
The process takes me to the state where my subconscious bleeds into the painting. Memories, ideas and dreams submerge through this physical and visual painterly struggle. A line is like walkabout in my mind. A surface is space, a memory and feeling. I know when it is finished, it can happen right away, after months or simply the next day. The painting feels distant in a way like it’s not my own anymore. It feels a distant but above I’m surprised by it.
WHAT INTERESTED YOU IN WORKING WITH 4BYSIX ON THIS PROJECT? WHAT DOES SUSTAINABILITY MEAN TO YOU?
Sustainability is very important in art, nature and in life. All choices in life lead towards something and I like it to be with integrity, conscious and honest. Otherwise, it’s a waste (of energy, time, materials and life).
Gijs Van Lith
Title: "Untitled, (a dream i cant remember)" 2025
Medium: Oil on tarpaulin
Dimensions: 90 x 90cm
Framing: We suggest to frame floating in a box frame without glass. Frame not included
HOW DID YOU FIND WORKING ON THE TARP? DID THE SURFACE SPARK ANY SIGNIFICANT ARTISTIC IMPULSIONS WHICH CHANGED YOUR INITIAL PLAN?
I don’t sketch, I don't have an initial plan. I made a choice to working on the dirty side the side with the most texture. For my texture is history, some thing you need to act on, deal with and is a great fire starter. My day; I just have a coffee and then I start. I’ve already seen stuff I need to fix, in the corner of my eye while walking through my painting studio toward my office/breakroom. I rely on my mood and intuition. I make drawings afterwards like afterthoughts. I normally have between 8 and 14 paintings hanging in my studio. And some in the other room drying or just standing there waiting. And I take some of them out put them in and remove others. And I also add new ones too. This a very organic and spontaneous dynamic. And that helped developing this work.
WHAT IS THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND YOUR ONGOING PRACTICE? DO YOU FIND YOURSELF REFERRING BACK TO IT DURING CREATIVE BLOCKS? CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT ANY PROJECTS YOU ARE WORKING ON NOW? WHAT IS NEXT FOR YOU?
Fun, challenging yourself and finding yourself. My studio is like my mind. It's a playground and free haven, no gravity and everything floats and blends from ideas, memories, energy to gestures, history and the mundane day to day things. This is a special place and I am in my natural habitat. This is where I react to the world and how I process , personal struggles and historical topics and the life.
My moto in this flow I’m in right now is best described as; re-perfect. Currently I’m working on Xxxxl landscape paintings (260x700cm). Which is a great physical challenge and gives me so much energy and positivity. One of them will be exhibited at Lundgren Gallery, Palma Mallorca. Another one is part of my upcoming solo show in a museum in 2026. That piece is more panoramic in size 175 x 600cm and the rhythm will feel more like a comic.