Taken under her wing by the painter and icon Ruby Bute, Juliana Van Der Wijst is exhibiting her canvases for the first time on Sunday May 7th at the Silk Cotton Art Gallery in Friar’s Bay.
This is an important moment for Juliana Van Der Wijst. She is about to exhibit her work for the first time, supported by one of the most experimented artists. Native of the Netherlands, Juliana Van Der Wijst has lived in St-Martin for 15 years before leaving the island after Hurricane Luis in 1995. After 25 years spent in the Netherlands, it’s when she came back to the Friendly Island in 2019 that she started to paint and, in the wake, met with the one being called the St-Martin Mother of Arts, painter and poet Ruby Bute. “It’s funny because I use to have some canvases of Ruby in my living room, but I didn’t know her”, Juliana Van Der Wijst remembers with amusement. By participating in the “Sip N’Paint” afternoons organized every Wednesday by Ruby Bute in her workshop in Friar’s Bay, a friendship was born between both women. Juliana has learned a lot under the watchful eye of the great lady. “I have taught her some techniques”, Ruby Bute explains. “I’ve been watching her since the beginning, and today she is ready to exhibit”, she thinks.
Ruby Bute’s protégé will make her debut on Sunday May 7th with her exhibition “Waves”. From 5pm to 8pm, the Silk Cotton Art Gallery will welcome several of her canvases on the theme of waves, ocean and nature. An event open to all that will shed some light on an additional talent of St-Martin.
"Waves" exhibition
Sunday May 7th, 5pm-8pm
Silk Cotton Art Gallery, Friar's Bay
