MONIQUE DE RUITER
AMSTERDAM BASED ARTIST
Visual addict.
Designer who loves to paint.

Trained originally as a textile designer at DAE (Design Academy Eindhoven), her work has recently focused on painting and mono printing, continually discovering new techniques and media.
She spent most of her career working as a stylist and chief editor for several Dutch interior magazines.

“I have been drawing and doodling for as long as I can remember and I picked up painting again in 2019, in a small studio under the guidance of an elderly painter with strong opinions. He directed and coached me, with an extensive knowledge of techniques and materials, supported by an outspoken and inimitable opinion on art.
After two years I felt the need to find my own way in my own place. I found it just around the corner from where I live, lucky me.  I share the studio with two other creatives; I am there most days. Discovering, creating, failing and trying to make things work. I like to work on consecutive projects, each with a self imposed deadline, a habit I inherited from the magazine profession.  I start a project without a predetermined outcome. First I unravel and discover, considering all options. I combine creativity with a goal; an idea with a head and a tail. Such an idea can be triggered by a memory, an image, an experience.

I grew up in many different countries across the globe. After graduating from Design Academy Eindhoven I decided to settle down in the Netherlands. With suitcases full of memories, images and experiences to draw from.

As a designer and stylist I created countless color schemes and patterns. The common thread in my work is my use of color in combination with sturdy shapes. I usually start working in subdued tones, but vivid colors always seem to emerge. A next project might prove differently. I’m not ruling out anything.”