Cloudscape

Nicky Liebenberg, Cloudscape (Blue), Drypoint Intaglio, 39.5 x 55.5cm, Variable edition of 8, 2025, Framed

Graphic media of drawing & amp; printmaking are the primary methods used as my process, sometimes incorporating mixed media such as collage & amp; chine-collé. There is a strong emphasis on drawing/ mark-making as an expressive medium. Art- making is a way to deal with life’s issues, a means of processing and making sense of things. A cathartic practice. The relationship between the (natural/seen) and metaphysical (spiritual/unseen) recur thematically throughout the work. In a broader sense, the relationship/ connection between spouses (marriage) and the human/Divine or God-connection. It is an exploration of the interplay between these and what happens in ‘the space between’. My art-making process is a visualization of the internal; external, the micro; macro. It is simultaneously personal and ethereal.

This duality is a recurring theme throughout the work depicted in differing colour, layers, and/or twin, mirroring images. 

Areas of inspiration include nature, anatomy; the metaphysical, i.e. the branch of philosophy that deals with the first principle of things, including abstract concepts such as being, knowing, identity, time, space, as well as the ontological, or the science of being. I endeavour to push perceived boundaries, to experiment and try new things with printmaking as a medium that has endless possibilities and variations. the challenge being in finding that perfect, workable equilibrium between what is established and what is new and fresh.