The Artist

You're 'The Artist'

You live to be immersed in your art.

As 'The Artist', you live for the moments when you are wholly immersed in your art. The moments when you can create, develop, and explore without restrictions or limitations.

You rebel against “standard” shots; instead, you are driven by the intensity of human emotions at their most raw. Where words fall short, your work conveys what it was like to be truly immersed in the emotions of your clients.

As 'The Artist', you operate on the fundamental mantra that better art means more success. Your biggest challenge has always been promoting your work to a broader audience. Those who know you recognize your talent, but you struggle to reach beyond this to book new clients.

It’s crucial for the ongoing success of your art that your business is able to flourish as well. This doesn’t mean becoming a hard-headed business person—find ways of promoting your work, that are in sync with your creative process. 

Check out Melanie E. Rijkers' fine art photography on:

www.instagram.com/eyespiration_dao 

Eyespiration is Puur Zien (Dutch) Artstudio23 Breda

Fine art photography & Life Coaching

Eyespiration by Artstudio23

Stichting Puur Zien 

Speelhuislaan 173, unit 137A 

Breda/the Netherlands/Europe

Holiday Hotels

Hotel, Motel, Holiday Inn

In the analog days people hardly took pictures 'just for the fun of it'. Not many people owned a camera, let alone used colour film, therefore most of my baby pictures are in black & white. Colour prints were more expensive to develope, so untill the late 70's and early 80's B&W film was used often still.

Colour film was only used for special occasions like a wedding, graduation or maybe a holiday. If you couldn't afford a colour film you bought postcards. After World War II with more money and free time then ever, the average Americans went on a roadtrip. Hotel, Motel, Holiday Inn, the United States were explored by car. In the 50's and 60's America blossomed. Not having to rebuild the country like torn down Europe, leisure was the new gold.

A decade ago I started collecting old B&W postcards to create Double Exposures fine art. I also bought some 'Kodak Chrome' postcards. I just loved the bright colours, but did not use them in my art yet. In my wedding photography I did cross process slide film to get those fab blues with bright yellows and reds, as Photoshop or a good quality digital DSLR weren't available yet. I will write about this special wedding photography later.

In 2014 I created my first series Holiday Hotel, available as fine art photography prints in all sizes. I come from a graphic design background, as in the late 80's when you could draw and paint you had to become a graphic design artist and you worked for an advertising agency. So I did my time at Sint Lucas (intermediate vocational education in graphic design) then ran to AKV|St.Joost - School of Fine Art and Design in 1992. St. Joost Academy is part of Avans University of Applied Sciences and offers undergraduate (BA) and graduate (MA) courses in fine art and design.

My love (and hate) for printed matter remained, I never really lost it. The first half of my carreer I was often called too artistic for commercial jobs and considered to be too commercial to be a 'true' non-commissioned artist. Whatever. I did what I did, and created a photography carreer still feeding the 4 mouths of my family. Graphic design knowledge wasn't all bad, I was able to design birth and wedding announcement cards in my own style using my photography, way before the cheap print websites emerged.

With Holiday Hotels I am experimenting with the Kodak Chrome postcards, as I am fascinated by the details of old fashion 4 colour print, also known as 'CMYK colour model'. Nowadays, just like photography, all is made digital even the print process. With full colour CMYK process a print is made in 4 layers, with Cyan (blue), Magenta (pink/red) and Yellow as main colours. To get the best density 'Key' (black) is added. CMY together create black as well, but this doesn't look fully black though.

I am now working on more Post Pop Art Prints of Holiday Hotels. The process of Seeing a special, new image in these old photos is wonderful way of learning how to See fresh without leaving your house. I remember being a student and taking macro photos of magazine images, only to use a small detail of the photo in art class. I used the 50 mm lens the wrong way, just held it to the camera and wow, super macro photos were born. I love these experiments and will never quit. Eyespiration!

The Book of Eyespiration

At this moment I am writing the Book of Eyespiration. My story about How to Meditate with Eyes Open will be published as an e-book first, later it will also become available as a printed book. Eyespiration: Let the world inspire you to take better pictures without a fancy camera. 

Looking for some Eyespiration? Look up!

The Book of Eyespiration - An introduction

Chapter 5. Photo Walk
You can find inspiration by solo walking. Go for a photo walk by yourself whenever possible. Lunch Walk. Early-Morning-Dropped-Kids-at-School Walk. Just Walk. I never feel lonely when I do and next to meeting nice people, you’ll find great innerpeace. When walking alone, sooner or later you’ll get to the point that you feel you are Meditating with Eyes Open.

Try to walk without thoughts distracting you. Try not to judge what you see, just walk. Look for nice details and intriguing visuals on your way. When you stop listening to your Monkey Mind you’ll start to use the Fresh, Pure eye. This is called Miksang in Tibetan. Buddhists know the moment you no longer judge or think about what you see, the Beauty of Life will appear. Miksang is also called mind stopping perception.

Eyespiration requires a silent mind. Therefore I prefer the word Mind-Emtpy-Ness to MindFullNess. If you can silence your jabbering Monkey Brain, you will open up the mind, body and soul to receive positive, calming energy just by Seeing the Beauty of Life. The moment you See a beautiful composition, you will Be in the Moment. The Eyespiration Moment or E-moment. When you are in this state, you See. 

You have learned how to create a beautiful composition with your camera in the previous chapters. If you do not want to take photograps, you can also take a mind picture. Now let’s go outside to create an E-moment!

San Francisco Bay Trail, a great track from Golden Gate Bridge to Fort Mason

When walking I passed the white houses and noticed the sky, palm trees and people. But: I also noticed the shadow of the palm tree on the wall. To create the photo on the right I picked the best point of view and cropped all unnecessary elements from the final image. E-Moment!

If I like a place, I like to hang out for a bit, letting it all in. I try not to judge what I see, just let emotions guide me. Like when you are waiting in line, try not to judge what’s happening. [Why isn’t this queue moving] Everywhere you go there’s something worthwile to See. But you have to make sure you silence your brain. Try to Meditate with Eyes Open. Be in the Moment, See.

Remember, you don’t always have to take a photo. If you are at a place and you See something but can’t reach for your camera quick enough, make a mind picture. Just experience the beauty of that Moment. Enjoy Life.


Eyespiration Prompt: Use Shadow

A shadow always adds something mysterious to your photo. Use the light. Not only the sun creates shadows, also an indoor lamp can. Look around you, up and down. Play with shapes.

• Best time of day: early morning or late afternoon

• Isolating a shadow too much can be boring

• Use lamp light

• Often a photo with a shadow tells a story in one image

• Don’t forget to look behind you

The Book of Eyespiration can be pre ordered via Eyespiration.com. First 1000 downloads will be free! Sign up for the newsletter and stay tuned for the release date. Eye See You!

Bali Retreat October 2015 - Let Nature Guide You

Straight To The Heart  Bali Retreat 1-7 October 2015

Ubud, Sudaji, Sanur

- Guided by Antonetta Fernandes and Melanie E. Rijkers -

Daily morning and evening check-ins, meditation, (photo) walks & workshops, purification water and fire ceremonies, temple visit, exploring villages, nature, waterfalls and much more

7 Days Straight To The Heart Retreat $1950,-

Short daily programme:

Morning check-in and sharing

Evening check-in and sharing

Day 1 visualisation exercise

Day 2 to 6 guided meditation with energy medicine exercise to clear blockages

Photography workshop

Organic meals

Bonus: One session of 20 minutes Angelic Reiki healing per person

Ubud 1-3 October (2 nights). Arrival and welcome at Ugung Raka 2-4 PM, a wonderful resort with rice fields on our doorstep. Ubud once was the highlight of cultural Bali, so next to the wonderful garden and pool of the hotel there’s plenty for you to do.

Sudaji 3-6 October (3 nights) true rural Bali. Omunity Bali, founded in 2010 by ZANZAN. This is a special place in the middle of lovely Balinese villages. It’s not like any other resort. Living with and amongst the community and local people of Sudaji. 

Sanur 6-7 October (1 night) Hotel Segara Agung, Sanur beach. Closure of our journey with walks and talks, mostly at the beach. End of our journey: 7 October noon.

Of course you can extend your stay if you wish to!

Be, See, Zen

Join us if you would like to experience first-hand real Balinese people and culture, taste the very good organic food and receive all other gifts from nature. It's al about being in the moment ♥


Come to this beautiful island and meet the locals, no crazy tourist stuff.

7 Days Straight To The Heart daily programme: 

Day 1, Unwind - arrival at Agung Raka Resort and Villas, Ubud. Enjoy this oasis of peace as Ubud itself is a very busy place. Take a dip in the pool, a walk through the rice fields or just enjoy the views and details of nature in the garden. 

Welcome meeting and a short introduction. Dinner in Ubud.

Day 2, Exploring Ubud - Ubud once was the highlight of cultural Bali. Visit a museum or art gallery. There’s also the monkey forest or watch a Balinese (fire) dance at night. 

Antonetta daily: Guided Meditation (30 mins). Energy Medicine Exercise, to clear blockages (20 mins) Body Alignment - clear blockages (10 min) - 1st time may require a bit longer. Evening Check-in and sharing 30 mins.

Melanie: An introduction to Straight To The Heart Photography (1,5-2h) with a photo walk through the gardens of Agung Raka. Daily photography workshop or walk, ending with a beach walk day 7.

Afternoon: free time. 

Day 3, Rural Bali - Omunity Bali, Sudaji.

Staying in Sudaji area, meeting the locals will create inner peace. You Are, you See, you become Zen, just by being there. Lunch & Dinner.

Day 4 & 5, Exploring rural Bali 

- Waterfalls & ricefields adventure. Earth with unspoiled nature of rural Bali.

- Local Traditional Market 

- Canang/ Traditional Balinese Offering Making

- Cleansing and Purification Ceremony - You will experience a real Balinese cleansing and purification ceremony at our local “holy spring” accompanied by a local priest. You will recieve pure energy from the spring to cleanse your body and mind. Participants must be dresssed appropriately.

- a journey to one of Sudaji’s most powerful temples to give thanks and gratitude

- Spiritual (Fire) Ceremony

- visit a local school

- Spiritual Dinner: This dinner is a teaching… in order to maximize learning experience exact details are kept secret. This dinner will nourish much more than your body. It is a spiritual journey of awareness.

Day 6, Beach time! After breakfast transfer to Hotel Segara Agung, Sanur. Check-in from 2 PM.

Day 7, Closure at the Beach - Sunrise Meeting to share experiences and maybe a dip in the ocean. 

Photo walk. Breakfast. End of our journey together: noon.

$1950 incl. breakfast, lunch, dinner 

day 2-6, all group transfers & trips

Of all the places I have visited in the last 15 years, Bali is undoubtedly the best. It has everything: sincerity, simplicity, purity, humility and peacefulness. 

Even outwardly it is so beautiful. You can see how beautiful the little cottages and villages are. They have such simplicity!

Bali had maintained most of its pristine purity. You don’t even have to meditate here; nature will meditate on your behalf. Early in the morning if you walk around the villages, their divine qualities will enter into you and you will become a different person. Here in Bali, nature itself will accelerate your inner progress!

Sri Chinmoy - ‘Heaven On Earth’ 

Travel details & bookings

The group will be 8 to 10 people max. As this is a popular retreat destination we may sell out quickly. If that is the case we will publish more dates asap. Please email us to register you interest: e-mail Melanie or e-mail Antonetta.

Your passport needs to be valid at least 6 months after your return flight from Bali. We recommend you to book your flights only after we confirm your booking. We recommend you fly in a day (or two) early so you can adjust to the hot and humid climate.

We’ll share twin and double rooms, if you are booking as a single person please consider sharing a room. It depends on the hotel what the extra costs will be for single occupancy.

$1950,- per person

$500,- deposit due immediately after booking (no refunds)

$1450,- to be paid no later then 1 September 2015.

Paypal: info @ mery(.)nl 

Nederland: you can also pay via NL41ABNA0607286849 t.a.v. Artstudio23 

BIC/Swift code: ABNANL2A

By booking this retreat you support the local community of Sudaji and the children of rural Bali. We e.g. will donate English books to the school libraries and the public library of Omunity. 

Itinerary

Ubud 1-3 October (2 nights). Arrival and welcome at Ugung Raka 2-4 PM, a wonderful resort with rice fields on our doorstep. Ubud once was the highlight of cultural Bali, so next to the wonderful garden and pool of the hotel there’s plenty  for you to do.

Sudaji, rural Bali 3-6 October (3 nights). Omunity Bali, founded in 2010 by ZANZAN. This is a special place in the middle of lovely Balinese villages. It’s not like any other resort, e.g. they are concerned with providing a future for their children, in a world without plastic, dangerous chemicals and fertilisers. Returning to basics – what the anchestors understood and practised. Omunity seeks to educate and inform both locals and visitors. To bridge the gap between environmental concerns and human interests through practical education and sustainable Sudaji community involvement. The concept for Omunity Bali is living with and amongst the community and local people of Sudaji. 

Sanur, Hotel Segara Agung 6-7 October (1 night). Closure of our journey with 

walks and talks, mostly at the beach. End of our journey: 7 October noon.

Antonetta is: An Author, Life Coach/Mentor, Public Speaker and Angelic Reiki Practitioner. Additionally she also graduated at the Academy of Wealth & Achievement as Master Results Coach, NLP Master Practitioner, NLP Trainer, Hypnotherapist and Performance Consultant. Antonetta continues to enter un-chartered waters from practicing energy medicine to getting her messages across the global showing her appeal is universal and her inspiration has no boundaries.

London, UK. Feel free to contact her via e-mail

www.antonettafernandes.co.uk

Melanie is: ZIENer. Photographer. Mother & Wife. Teacher of Miksang Contemplative Photography. Inspirator & Storyteller. Living in the Netherlands, traveling all over the world to spread  PURE vision. Photo Therapy Coach. Zien means ‘to see’ in Dutch. ‘Ziener’ also means prophet. #ikzieikzie 

Breda, the Netherlands. Feel free to contact her via e-mail 

www.mery.nl

ZANZAN is: our Balinese spiritual guide and founder of Omunity (day 3-6). A highly experienced Yoga instructor (traditional Maha Patanjali). He loves to share his knowledge. Father of three, married to Putu Shelly. You can ask him anything!

Sudaji, Sekumpul and Lemukih - Bali, Indonesia www.omunitybali.com 

You can also follow our event on Facebook.