FLASH FRIDAY: 15 Pretty Ladies by Jeroen Gardenier

This renowned artist is bringing vibrancy and variety to the lady head motif.

The best part about Fridays is 1. You’re only a few hours away from the weekend, and 2. It’s Flash Friday. So unless you’re new around here, you know what that means — we’re bringing you some amazing flash art from new artists. This week we’re taking you to Amsterdam and paying a visit to Blue Blood Studios. A shop renowned for its variety of styles, including old school, Japanese traditional, photo-realism, as well as neo-traditional, Blue Blood is also home to artist Jeroen Gardenier, who is rocking out with his renditions of incredibly eclectic and traditional lady heads.

Gardenier sets his lady head flash art apart by ensuring by creating an entire persona for each of them, each one vastly different from the next. Eyes, skin color, hair color, and even hair style are taken into account, a thoughtful touch considering the vast majority of lady heads gravitate towards a single hair style. Afro-centric babes are given beautiful and voluminous hair, while a fortune teller dons a silky head scarf. The spider woman’s head is adorned with a brown recluse, while Medusa’s hair is made up entirely of serpents. Gardenier’s lady heads are truly a mixed bag.

Each portrait's piece de resistance, however, is the vibrant coloring that punctuates each woman. Feathers from an eagle come alive with subtle accents of blue, while the Flower Child’s frock is a rainbow tie dye dream. Certain elements at times even look like they’re simply glowing with pigment, a characteristic found in flash art that isn’t as easily translated to an actual tattoo. Gardenier’s ladies are similar to a mirror — they’re bound to reflect you or someone you know in some way or another.