Wieteke van Zeil
Art historian Wieteke van Zeil (b. 1973) worked in museums and ran debates. From 2010, she started taking photographs with her iPhone, details in paintings, and realized how often we miss the essential details about how people live, suffer, love, struggle and find enjoyment, as much hundreds of years ago as today.
The essays in Up Closer, originally published in a Dutch daily paper, won the European Newspaper Award.
More Wieteke van Zeil
Up Closer
Ernst Gombrich, cultural historian, once remarked: ‘One never finishes learning about art. There are always new things to discover.’ In 'Up Closer', art historian Wieteke van Zeil shows us details in paintings that we wouldn’t normally notice. She discusses their symbolism and shares her own associations with us, stimulating us to go back and look more closely.
Always Something to Find
How often do we really take the time to reach a considered verdict? Looking at art can help us, art is patient, it broadens perspectives, helps one see things anew. Taking striking elements from numerous works of art as her basis, Wieteke van Zeil provides insight into how opinions are formed: what role, for example, does your mood and your background play, and why it is so difficult to change your mind?