ABOUT THE WORK
I'm Cynthia Lang, an artist from Amsterdam, born in Arnhem. As a child, I was passionate about reading comic books and creating my own. Schoolbooks rarely captured my attention the way images did. Words often felt flat, while a single picture could tell an entire story. This early fascination with visual storytelling still runs through my work, shaping my approach to composition, space and meaning.
After graduating high school with an art diploma, I moved to Amsterdam and studied at Vrije Academie de Leuwenburgh. Later, I focused on storyboarding, background design and character creation at the Cartoon School.
However, I took a different path, setting aside my artistic aspirations. Nearly two decades later, life's challenges sparked a profound period of soul-searching, guiding me back to my childhood passion and my true self.
Nowadays much of my work is figurative abstract, created in both digital and traditional mediums, including acrylic, pastel, glaze and more. I try to capture the spirit of a subject beyond the obvious, distilling feeling and experience into shape and colour while maintaining a sense of recognition.
'My Odes' features detailed drawings inspired by places that move me. Each piece took nearly seven uninterrupted weeks to create, shaped by close observation and a lot of patience. I capture moments, memories and details that might otherwise have faded away, preserving them in this series.
Birds fascinate me. They're like living works of art, each with their own colour palette and pattern. In 'Feathered Friends', I capture their movement, gestures and sense of freedom through quick sketches and subtle details, with a lighthearted spirit running throughout the series.
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'The Elpida Series' -meaning 'hope' in Greek- is my most personal body of work. This collection of eleven pieces reflects a dark chapter in my life. Each work was created spontaneously, serving as a way to process raw reality.
Occasionally, I present my artwork at Art Amsterdam Spui, a serene open-air art market in the heart of the city. It's a wonderful opportunity to connect directly with viewers and experience how each person brings their own perspective to my work.
I most admire Pablo Picasso's bold, fearless and childlike approach to art. His words, "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up," reflect my own journey, reminding me that our truest nature endures.
'Les pains de Picasso'. Photograph by Robert Doisneau, 1952