We Have a Winner: Katarzyna Baldyga | Ron Mandos Young Blood Award 2024

26.07.24

We’re thrilled to announce the winner of the RM Young Blood Award: Katarzyna Baldyga! The award was presented this afternoon by Suzanne Swarts, Director of Museum Voorlinden, during our festive opening party. The winning artwork, Untitled Painting, 2024, a piece featuring oil on canvas and silkscreen print will be donated by the Ron Mandos Young Blood Foundation to the permanent collection of Museum Voorlinden.

About the artist and the work, Suzanne Swarts said: “Seeing Katarzyna Baldyga’s work was love at first sight. It’s clear that she knows exactly what she’s doing. She has a unique ability to captivate the viewer, inviting them to join her in her experiment with painting, printing, and repainting”.

Baldyga, a talented Polish painter based in Amsterdam, is a recent graduate of the Gerrit Rietveld Academie. Her work is celebrated for its exploration of fluidity in form and perception. Using a dynamic process that includes painting, printing, and repainting, she often flips her canvases, embracing spontaneity and allowing each mark to guide the next. This method leads to surprising and revealing compositions.

 For Untitled Painting, 2024, she found inspiration in Monet’s Rouen Cathedrals, employing layered techniques to create an ambiguous visual language that transitions between the real and the abstract. Her art challenges conventional boundaries, inviting viewers to experience a deep emotional connection with the work.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this special event. If you missed it, the exhibition is now open to the public, showcasing the extraordinary works of talented graduates like Katarzyna Baldyga. Come and explore these exceptional pieces!