Today we’d like to introduce you to Bettina Madini.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I was born in Berlin, Germany, a city that was separated by a wall. JFK referred to Berlin as ““I know of no town, no city, that has been besieged for 18 years that still lives with the vitality and the force, and the hope and the determination of the city of West Berlin. Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free.”
This amazing city has given me so much…. the thrive for freedom, inspiration and joy and for sure the strength to never give up. I believe that we are only lost when we give up. Although I have loved art all my life and enthusiastically been drawing Walt Disney characters when I was in grade school (to the delight of my grandmother), it took me years and many choices to really immerse myself fully into and commit to the journey of art.
In 1992, I chose to leave Berlin, determined to live in other countries and speak foreign languages, live in foreign cultures. I accepted a lucrative job offer and moved to Luxembourg where I pursued a successful career in the corporate financial world. The desire to express my creative energies built dynamically over the years, and it led me to searching for an art school that I could attend in the evenings. I resumed my art education in 1998 at the Ecole d’Art Contemporain in Luxembourg where I studied with Jean-Marc Tosello.
Always searching for greater and more, in 2003, I left Europe and moved to New York City. There, I continued my studies at the National Academy School of Fine Arts and dived further into painting and drawing with teachers such as Susan Shatter, Sharon Sprung, Henry Finckelstein and Wolf Kahn.
I will always be grateful for what they have contributed to me!
My entire artistic ‘education’ has been based on color theory and expression via color. And, I love color! Just talking about it right now makes me smile!
I have been living and working as an artist in the United States since 2004. In 2004, I also applied for US residency. Through a personal contact, I was able to work with James Yood from the well-known Art Institute. After reviewing my work, he was inspired to endorse my application.
The journey has been magically amazing and continues to amaze me. I have learned so much! One of the main things that I’ve learned is when we choose what is exciting and joyful to us, even when it is also challenging, when we choose it and say yes, doors open that we had no idea even existed. And this is what I am here to inspire forward into the world. with everything that I’m creating. Be it with my paintings, my fashion label “Magical Bodies”, writing, speaking, being.
I travel nationally and internationally with my art, classes and workshops. Through the years, I have done different shows and events in the Chicagoland area.
Just several weeks ago, I spent the afternoon at the Randolph Street Market and was impressed with the eclectic collection that I saw. I also attended several events at the Merchandise Mart where I made good contacts and future prospects with the One Of A Kind Art Show and the StyleMax Show.
‘Saying Yes! to the Universe is adding the postage stamp to actualizing our future.’ – Bettina Madini
Please tell us about your art.
The red thread that goes through everything I have been creating is color. Expressive color and motion. I’m a painter, and I also create ‘wearable art’. It started many years ago when a friend said to me “Bettina! People should be able to wear your art!” And that exploded like a ‘gentle’ bomb (if there is such thing) in my universe. I looked at my acrylic and watercolor paintings, oils and pastels and wondered ‘What can I create? And how can it be wearable? I started knitting and developed one-of-a-kind hand-knitted ‘Goddess Wraps’ that were very popular from the first moment. Years later, I started painting on silk. One-of-a-kind silk scarves and silk drapes and also wall hangings. In 2017, I created a line of artful fashion, with the name ‘Magical Bodies’. They are all based on my original paintings that I source for the creation of leggings, dresses, scarves and hats.
Is such a joy for me to create, to see what unfolds under my brush on the canvas. I don’t compose my paintings cognitively, but allow them to unfold. It usually starts with a color inviting me to dance with it, and others chime in. By the end of the day, it’s a symphony of color! And THAT space of joy and inspiration that color is, that creation is when it is undefined, that’s what I love to bring into the world, globally.
I had my first exhibition in Luxembourg, in 2001 if I remember well. People walked up to me at the opening and later wrote in my guest book and told me how much my paintings inspired them to have a more positive outlook on life and to see possibility. They felt encouraged and more hopeful for their lives. That is the kind of change I would like to be here. A source for joy.
Our modern world has so many challenges and can easily estrange people from one another and from themselves. People get lost in the obligations, chores and requirements and forget about why they are here and that happiness is available for them. I would like to bring that color of joy to those who are willing to have it.
What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
What is great about being an artist today is the space that technology and the internet have opened for us. It is so much easier to have our presence online and for an international audience to enjoy art and an artist to be ‘seen’. We have social media where we can share our message directly and don’t depend on a dealer or art gallery to speak about us. Art has come out of the ivory tower to be approachable by pretty much anybody who would like to talk with an artist. That’s fabulous! And, these possibilities also come with challenges.
Artists are required to come out of their studios and present themselves, take up the challenge of public speaking whether it’s to a large or small audience in a hall or on YouTube, or Facebook live.
What artists require the most is customers and collectors. To many artists, purchasing a booth spot in an art expo or art fair is, on top of travel expenses, takes a big toll. So does advertising. So many art organizations still focus on creating art, but don’t facilitate the business of art, which entails building, maintaining and expanding a customer base that will support the artist’s business of art.
Cities can create ‘artist’s portals’ that facilitate ease with grant-writing at low cost. Organizing art fairs on a public level, at favorable entrance fee levels for artists, with commission on sales could also be great support. I believe as artists, we are all happy to pay commissions to those who contribute to us.
What you are doing here at Voyage Chicago, with opening your space for artists to voice their creativity is wonderful! I’m so very grateful!
I always ask “What else is possible here, that we haven’t even considered?” Can we get together in our communities and start a fun crowdfunding campaign, with city support, with media? Bring joy and color to the world rather than daily ‘grey news’.
I would love to work and create with cities to create a Global Joyful World with Art.
I am grateful for the opportunity to communicate with Voyage Chicago and to exchange ideas and be heard. Thank you!
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
People can find my work on my website at www.BettinaMadini.com and on Saatchi Online at https://www.saatchiart.com/BettinaMadini.
I also have a solo exhibition at Gallery M in Milwaukee at the Intercontinental Hotel that is going to celebrate its Grand Opening on August 24. There, we will showcase my paintings and fashion designs as well as writings.
And, anybody traveling to beautiful Door County in Wisconsin can find my paintings and ‘Magical Body’ fashion designs at the Linden Gallery in Ellison Bay.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.BettinaMadini.com
- Phone: 608-297-9593
- Email: bettina@bettinamadini.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bettinamadini/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bettina.starrose
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/BettinaStarRose
- Other: https://www.lindensgallery.com/
Image Credit:
“Phoenix Creation Rising”: photocredit: Steve Agard, opacolor Madison
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