Corjan Nodelijk Dutch, b. 1962

Corjan Nodelijk's (Dordrecht, 1962) is a painter, ceramist and composer. He studied at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam, graduating with honours in drawing and painting. For some time now, he creates three-dimensional endearing, surrealistic figures.

His fabulous creatures balance between human, animal, reality and imagination. With soft shapes, subtle colour accents and a touch of alienation, his figures take on an almost mythical appearance. Nodelijk's work fits into the centuries-old tradition in which humans and animals merge into one another. Since ancient times, hybrid creatures have played a role in art and mythology - from the Egyptian gods with animal heads to the medieval mythical creatures that represented human characteristics. Nodelijk follows in this tradition but gives it a contemporary twist: his images are not frightening or exalted, but rather cuddly, soft and poetic.

His creatures are composed of two or more species, elongated, widened and/or shortened. His hand determines their anatomy. Nodelijk often starts with found artefacts, which he distorts to give it a distinctive appearance. The artist does not strive for perfection: “perfection is boring”, according to Corjan Nodelijk.