Local woodwork artist Dagmar Maini will be showcasing her rare skills as a major part of the GESTALT exhibition at Art Lovers Australia’s Southport gallery.
Dagmar Maini is a professional woodwork artist. The local artist combines her marquetry with woodcarving and colours using painting and phototransfer.
“As long as I can remember, I always had the need to create and express myself.
I grew up in an artistic family; my dad is a cartoonist, a graphic designer and a woodworker and my sister is a ceramic artist with her own gallery. [Creativity] is in my blood. The love of handmade crafts was always valued in my family.”
Marquetry developed into a sophisticated art form in Europe in the mid-1500s, and while marquetry has a long tradition, a more modern style of marquetry is relatively uncommon.
“It is a fact that we are losing our traditional skills because everything is so convenient, quick, easy and replaceable. Fine crafts are very undervalued in today’s world,” Dagmar said.
“My technique is my own, non-traditional. I combine marquetry with carving, engraving, layering and colours. Next, I would like to get more into wood turning. I want to add more three-dimensional shapes and elements to my art. I like to experiment. I need to have a challenge and learn new skills. I get bored if I stay still!”
Dagmar began with small wall hangings and slowly continued to work on larger and larger pieces. After getting more recognition and exposure, her confidence grew, and she found herself stepping further out of her creative comfort zone.
“I started to think of myself as an artist when one of my pieces was picked for a juried group exhibition by New York-based art writer and critic Phyllis Tuchman for Site: Brooklyn Gallery in New York.”
Every one of Dagmar’s artworks starts with a sketch. The rough sketch is often just a shape that begins to develop step by step as she intuitively applies different techniques to create specific effects and shapes. Dagmar has talked about the enjoyment of creating numerous little shapes and pieces and then giving herself the challenge of putting them together to create one object.
For Dagmar, creating art is a “felt” process; sometimes, the aim is to explore, and sometimes to express. The choice of shapes and colours is an emotional decision. “I really enjoy pursuing the challenging pathway to abstraction. I believe that abstract art engages you at another level. You have to stop trying to understand it and just feel it.”
“Marquetry taught me to slow down and enjoy the process. Each piece is a reminder of the close relationship between Mother Earth and us,” Dagmar said. “I also find it fascinating that a tree lives, dies and is reborn again in the form of art or furniture.”
Dagmar is a feature artist currently on show at the Art Lovers Gallery, Southport from 6 August to 10 September.
