Yvonne Tennebroek
Biography:
Yvonne Tennebroek was born in the Netherlands in 1964. She studied art at the Akademie Voor Kunst en Vormgeving in ‘s-Hertogenbosch from 1982 to 1986. She took special interest in the techniques of the “Old European Masters.” During the first few years of her career, she worked mainly with oil paints. After discovering the special quality and flexibility of egg tempera, however, she decided to work predominantly with this very old technique. She prepares her own paints with natural pigments.
She has traveled and lived in the U.S.A. and various countries in Western Europe, seeking to deepen her understanding and experience of art. Currently, she lives in Canada. She works in a variety of techniques, particularly egg tempera, oil paints, etching and block printing. Her work has been exhibited in one-person and group shows in Canada and the Netherlands.
Technique:
The way in which I work with the materials is a very important part of my work. I prefer egg tempera, which is the most basic, natural paint invented. Egg yolk is a natural medium of oils and water. I primarily use natural pigments, made from minerals, stones, sand or iron oxides ground up into a very fine powder. These pigments are mixed with the egg yolk and then used as paint. The luminosity and opacity of egg tempera suit my work better than any other paints or media. The fact that egg tempera dries first into a soft surface allows me to manipulate the opaque colours. A unique atmosphere is created by carving into the paint. The underlying layers begin to emerge and start to shimmer through, which results in a blending and separation of colours.
