SECRET HIDEAWAYS
Drawings by
Nathan Hiemstra
Fri, Feb 9: 6-10pm

Extended through February’s 2nd Friday Opening!

The Show:

This exhibition is a series of 22 drawings of cozy places of delight, fun, relaxation, and wonder.

The hideaways are of cabins, treehouses, and boats. They are nestled in woods, near streams and lakes and are furnished with unexpected objects of wonder like parachuting treasures, water slides coming out of trees, and pet clouds. The objects are drawn simply, like I did as a kid.

For creating a narrative to connect all the drawings, words felt too specific. So, on the wall behind all the drawings, I made a drawing of a large map with markers scattered across two islands indicating where each hideaway lives. I challenge you to guess which marker belongs to which hideaway. You’ll see hints by matching the geography between the drawing and map.

At the exhibition there will be coloring books full of these hideaways. We invite you (and your inner child) to color and hang out in a cozy corner of the gallery with blankets, snacks, a fake campfire, and Nathan’s pet cloud Molly.

The Story Behind the Drawings:

On a whim, I drew my grandparent’s house from memory and it filled me with love and comfort. When I asked myself what else would give me this feeling, I drew a cabin and a dog house in the woods.

Because of some inner child healing work I had been doing, I recognized I was having a dialog with my inner child, whose unrequited needs came out sideways while I fumbled through early  adulthood. The healing work involves my inner adult recognizing those needs and providing nurturing, which in this case, meant listening and responding. I ask him what would give him comfort to see next to this dog house? What would fill you with delight and wonder? When I reach deep into the feelings of that kid, responses are unlocked that I never would have come up with otherwise. Sometimes I actually gasp. A cloud tucked into it’s bed. A slice of pie floating by in a stream. I draw it and the kid feels heard and loved and delighted. Repeating this builds a reservoir of serenity and well-being.

Sources of inspiration

• The House on the Rock: The ultimate secret hideaway.
• Artist’s Way: Nurturing the inner child to unlock creativity.
• Born To Win: The adult and child ego states.
• Thomas Woodruff’s paintings