Textured painting: add depth and character to your painting

Paint alone doesn't always tell the whole story. Mixed media adds that little something extra. Sand, earth, natural pigments, paper, fabric… sometimes even plastic. This makes your painting not just an image, but an object with depth, texture, and character. It invites you to look, discover, and sometimes almost touch it.

For me, mixed media is a direct experience. I feel how a piece comes to life, discover the layers and traces of the creative process, and experience a connection with the material. It's not just about technique, but about intuition, material, and emotion coming together. This makes painting tangible and personal.

Inspiration from nature

I draw my inspiration from nature. I want to bring the colors and textures I see there into my work. That's why I use sand, earth, leaves, twigs, and natural pigments. Mixed media forces me to look, feel, and experiment. How do the materials react to each other? What happens when the work gets wet? Sometimes I don't know beforehand, and that's exactly the best part.

Sometimes funny or unexpected things happen. Once, for example, I experimented with rust: iron powder over paper and fabric, a little vinegar on top… and the next day my entire piece had become one big rust stain. A bit too enthusiastic, so. But honestly? It gave the painting a surprising look that I hadn't anticipated myself.

Letting go of control

Mixed media is about balance. You choose colors and compositions, but also leave room for what the material itself wants to do. Sometimes that means accepting that a layer doesn't look the way you had imagined. Sometimes you don't like a layer and you peel it back, revealing other beautiful textures underneath. It is precisely the unexpected that gives a piece character and life.

Once, I incorporated a piece of driftwood into a painting. But what I hadn't accounted for is that over time the wood began to split open in a way I could never have predicted. As if the wood wanted to tell its own story. 

Many people think that mixed media is decorative or a way to hide technical uncertainty. In reality, it requires knowledge of materials, insight into construction, and a good eye for balance. Natural materials don't have to be coarse or immediately recognizable (like the macaron paintings from when we were young); they can be used subtly, refined, and elegantly. Time also plays a role. Materials react to air and moisture, layers need time to settle, and sometimes cracks or new textures emerge during drying. Precisely those traces make each piece unique.

Experience it yourself

Mixed media is more than technique to me. It is slowing down, feeling, and listening to what a piece needs. With natural materials, each painting gets its own voice and a story that is visible and tangible.

Want to discover it yourself? Come to my Sea Workshop in Zeist or Mini-course in Utrecht. Let yourself be inspired by material, color, and texture. And rest assured: sometimes something goes completely differently than planned. That is exactly the best part.