Michael Raedecker (born 1963) is a Dutch artist. He studied fashion design but chose art instead, incorporating embroidery into his paintings. His paintings often feature a sensitive colour palette of faded pastels; his houses appear to be nestled in a foggy, snowy landscape. The delicate lines create ghostlike images; Raedecker leaves areas unpainted giving the sense that these subjects will disappear if you look long enough.
The use of embroidery makes Raedecker’s paintings unique and gives them their character. The threads create texture in a way that a drawn or painted line cannot; you want to run your fingers over the surface and feel the painting, not just look at it. Painting over the threads also allows the lines to be more subtle, defined by the threads’ shadow. His subject matter is the everyday; suburban houses and domestic items, Raedecker highlights the beauty in ordinary things.
I particularly like the paintings of the suburban houses; the straight lines in fixed contrast with the organic squiggles in the background and the warm tones of the wood stand out against the blue. Houses represent security and safety and these houses invite the viewer in; the windows tempt you to look closer at what’s hidden inside. But there is also an eeriness, in incomplete the houses fade away, along with the sense of security. This actually reflects the nature of the painting; the creation process is left unfinished showing that this house is just a collection of marks on a canvas; there is no interior, it offers no safety. It is there to be viewed and enjoyed from afar.
If you want to take a look at some of my work inspired by Raedecker’s colour palette and stitching, click here.
All images taken from: http://www.andrearosengallery.com/artists/michael-raedecker/images
