'Atlantis' - Myth and Metaphor: Stories of sunken cities have fascinated us for millennia; the most tantalizing of all: Atlantis. We are drawn to the idea of other worlds, a mythical city lost to the waves, an advanced ancient civilization, a Utopia we could have evolved from... ‘Atlantis’ can also be seen as a metaphor, bridging human experience to more sublime notions; the feeling of catharsis by a terrifying disaster of a scale beyond comprehension, which is at the same time purifying. And from this root, stories of a Flood appear in variants – the Great Flood of Mesopotamian mythology, the Christian story of The Flood and Noah’s Ark in the Old Testament. Here the metaphor is connected with a sense of rebirth or redemption. In these 'Atlantis’ paintings, Greek temples of the Parthenon are submerged, such as the Ereichteion with Karyatiden; a statue of an Egyptian pharaoh drowned; an Amphitheater sunken at the ocean floor…. More recent reference to 'Atlantis' by underwater archaeologic finds of the Egyptian/Greek city Thonis/Heracleion near the coast of Alexandria have been an inspiration to the series as well. Moreover, 'Atlantis' is a contemplation on the preserverance of civilisation; a concern for the state of the arts and the survival of our cultural values.

During 2021 - 2022, in collaboration with pianist Marcel Worms, the artist created a series of paintings in oil on canvas, as well as designs in acrylic paint on paper, related to J.S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier while listening to and following the music. Each key of the music has a characteristic mood according to the doctrine of the affects (German: "Affektenlehre") developed in the Baroque. In these paintings, these affects are translated into colours, rhythmic shapes and melodic lines.

MusicpaintingLIVE is a new performance art, combining live music with painting on canvas, made directly during a concert. This visual creation follows the musical movement and the colour of sound at the same time, producing a unique experience. MusicpaintingLIVE developed from Maryleen Schiltkamp's collaboration with the Latvian pianist Reinis Zariņš; as co-authors of the concept they are known for their unusual programs and striking stage productions. Since 2015 they performed at international venues and festivals, including London, Prague, Amsterdam, Cēsis (LV) and in Riga (LV) with Stravinsky's epic piece The Rite of Spring in 2023. https://maryleenschiltkamp.com/musicpaintinglive/ http://reiniszarins.com

Fresco course at studio Judith Dubois, Amsterdam, 2008