About me:

Biography:

The foundations for my illustration work were laid in my early youth, so I will start there.
I was born as Carmen Marcella Modde in Roosendaal, Netherlands. Having no brother or sister, I learned to entertain myself. I still see myself as a little girl, lying on her belly in front of the fireplace with paper and pencils. Drawing became a second nature to me and I filled up a whole lot of drawing books with my fantasies and fairytales.
At the age of 17, I went to art school in Breda, where I studied to become a fashion illustrator.
Among the classes I took were fashion illustration, fashion design, life model drawing, costume history, history of arts and graphic design.
Looking back at that period, I must admit that the Academy of Art “damaged”my passion
for drawing. It was a world of free and abstract artists and therefore the craft of realistic drawing
was not something they appreciated.
After my exams I discovered the hard and commercial ways of the fashion industry and I soon realized it wasn’t my world at all. That was the main reason I didn't end up as a fashion illustrator after finishing my studies.
But these circumstances couldn’t keep me from being the creative person I have always been.
I have designed and sown many pieces of clothing throughout the years. I even discovered a
new way to express my sense of esthetics. Several gardens have been made tangible through
my vision. Everything, from design to realization was in my hands.
Some commissions for human and animal portraits prevented me from loosing all touch with
my paper and pencils though.
In 2001 I “rediscovered” the joy of drawing and painting, when I started a study to become a creative therapist/drawing teacher. This alternative and spiritual approach suited me much better than the commercial work I once undertook, giving me the freedom to explore my fantasies instead of being dictated by current trends.

In the summer of 2005 I met my partner Vincent. We found each other thanks to our interest in
metal music. We have a lot in common and we can sense each others thought nearly perfect.
We share the passion for drawing and photography. Together we explore our world, be it the
fathomable one or the ones in our minds and hope to catch the images they shows us on canvas or print. Our mutual inspiration is the secret of our success.
In 2006 after our first holiday together in Germany, we decided we would like to spend our
days side by side in this beautiful country. We bought a lovely house amidst forests and
mountains and moved in March 2007 to leave the hectic of the Netherlands behind us.
A great inspiring and creative future lies ahead of us...

My Inspirations:

For years I have admired the work of the Czech Jugendstil artist Alphonse Mucha. Not just his popular decorative panels which he made for a large audience, but more so his masterpiece “The Slav Epic”, a beautiful series of 20 immense paintings.
I also think the sometimes-bizarre erotic female characters of Gustav Klimt are very special.
The paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites, John William Waterhouse in particular, are masterful to me. The subjects - mostly seductively beautiful women in wonderful garments, often with allegoric, mythological, tragic or romantic backgrounds - appeal greatly to me. It is a style, which is once again 'done', after being scorned as 'kitsch' and found pathetic for quite a long time.
I also love the endless precision in the engravings of Albrecht Dürer and the works of William Blake are full of symbols and arcana which give one food for thought.

I am a woman with a strong bond with nature and that is why I prefer drawing living things.
I am at my best when I am outside and I pay attention to the finest details that I come across
on my path. I photograph everything that inspires me. The images I make can be expressions of the moment by themselves or if not I archive them. They can always be a source of inspiration, or just a simple reference for later use in my drawings.
Beside nature, music is a strong, emotional source of inspiration. I’m really moved by several
genres of metal, dark(neo) folk and ambient music. I became interested in these kinds of music quite some time ago thanks to my son Oscar and since this revelation music has enriched my life daily.
A lot of lyrics from bands such as Primordial, Novembers Doom, Tenhi, Empyrium, Noekk and
Nest are inspired by the struggles of life, cultural heritage, mythology and the beauty of nature.
These songs and lyrics evoke atmospheres that are wonderful to transfer to paper. My other
musical sources of inspiration are Loreena McKennit, Clannad and the original musical art
of Kate Bush.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank the people who helped creating the Website:

Vincent, my love, for all the effort and inspiration.

My beautiful son Oscar, for a part of the English translation.

My dear German friends Joachim and Cäcilia for their endless hospitality and helping me out with the German translation.