THE GARDEN
Nis NaMdar
Curated by ARTPIQ
On the occasion of this year’s ArtCologne, Artpiq and MIRROR present The Garden by Nis Namdar in Mallorca. The exhibition brings together seven new works that open a dialogue between animals, humans, and nature—inviting us to see the world from a different perspective.
Artpiq positions itself as a platform for contemporary voices that explore new ways of relating to the world while advancing innovative approaches to painting. As part of its curatorial program, the exhibition highlights international artists and evolving perspectives within contemporary art.
Namdar’s practice begins with a fundamental question: what makes us human? In a time marked by increasing disconnection, she finds unexpected answers in the animal world. Her works are not mere depictions but intimate portraits—encounters that encourage a slower, more attentive way of seeing. In The Garden, animals become messengers of another mode of existence, embodying awareness, dignity, and respect.
Her paintings reflect the beauty of the untouched and the inherent value of all living beings. They invite us to pause and reconsider our place in the natural world: what can we learn from nature—and how much of it still lives within us?
Through her work, Namdar creates spaces for reflection, bridging the boundaries between species and reminding us that we are part of a larger whole.
The Garden is both a tribute to life in all its forms and an invitation to rediscover our humanity through the lens of nature.
ARTPIQ ARTIST
Nis namdar
Nis Namdar, born in Germany in 1982, lives and works as an independent artist in Palma, Mallorca. Her artistic sensibility developed early, shaped by the contrast between the Persian craftsmanship of her maternal family and the improvisational spirit of her father’s jazz music—a duality between tradition and freedom that continues to inform her work.
Her paintings exist in a tension between precision and emotion, cultural reflection and natural origin. At the core of her practice lies the question of identity—an exploration of what it means to be human and how all living beings are connected. Through her work, Namdar creates spaces for reflection and invites a renewed perspective on the relationship between humans, animals, and nature.
ARTPIQ ARTIST
about nis namdars art
Her paintings exist in a tension between precision and emotion, cultural reflection and natural origin. At the core of her practice lies the question of identity—an exploration of what it means to be human and how all living beings are connected. Through her work, Namdar creates spaces for reflection and invites a renewed perspective on the relationship between humans, animals, and nature.
The garden - on stillness, presence, and seeing differently
Created during a period of solitude in Mallorca, The Garden marks a quiet yet profound shift in Nis Namdar’s practice. In this conversation, she reflects on stillness, the presence of animals, and a more attentive way of seeing — one that gently repositions what it means to be human.
The Garden marks a new body of work. What was the starting point for this series?
Two years ago, I landed on the Balearic island of Mallorca, and everything shifted. New landscapes, a new language, no familiar faces—just me and this overwhelming, beautiful stillness I’d never known before. The solitude didn’t just change my surroundings; it stripped away the noise, the habits, the distractions. Suddenly, I was face-to-face with myself and the world around me. That’s where The Garden was born—not from a plan, but from this deep, almost primal need to respond to the quiet.
Your paintings explore the relationship between animals, humans, and nature. What draws you to this dialogue?
I started with human portraits, but then something electric happened when I began to weave animals into the work—like in Ocean Eyes. It wasn’t just about adding another figure; it was about breaking the hierarchy. Humans weren’t the center anymore. The moment I stepped back, the whole story changed. Animals became mirrors, even teachers. Their presence opened up this vast, untamed space where nature wasn’t just a backdrop—it was alive, demanding to be seen.
And the more I painted them, the more I realized how much we have in common. Their stillness, their wildness, their quiet dignity—it’s all there in us, too, if we dare to look.
Your practice reflects on what it means to be human. How has this question evolved for you through painting?
Funny enough, the deeper I dug into what it means to be human, the further I moved from humans themselves. The people I saw, and myself included, were rushed, anxious, tangled in invisible webs of expectation. But animals? They’re just there—fully present, unapologetically themselves. They reminded me of what we’ve lost: the art of being, the humility of knowing our place in the circle. Every creature has a role. But we’ve forgotten we’re part of that. My work is a call to remember—to step out of the chaos, to touch the earth again, to see ourselves not as rulers, but as threads in this vast, shimmering tapestry of life.
Your work balances precision and emotion. How do you navigate this tension in your process?
I don’t paint what I see—I paint what I feel. That’s where the magic lives, in the space between the real and the imagined. So I let the brush dance between precision and wildness: a sharp eye here, a burst of color there, a line that’s more about energy than accuracy. It’s not about perfection; it’s about truth. The truth of a moment, a glance, a breath. I want people to look at my work and feel something stir inside them—not just see a picture, but experience a spark and feel something.
