Since Heitch rejects form, how then is the space filled up? The material used to make up the background is diverse and from different sources :
- Banana leaves
- Wood chippings
- Steel & aluminum pieces
- Fabric
- Raphia fiber
One can spot these materials and other various other concoctions made out of glue and acrylic paint. Whether these are used to set the background or to develop the topic of the painting, Heitch exclusively uses acrylic paint.
Techniques
Once the background is set on a more or less flat surface that’s anything but smooth because Heitch looks for the effect that is created by the various materials, the painting comes to life through scratching and friction. It can also be said that her canvas is like a place where the materials are welcome to coexist. Somehow the random collection of items achieves harmony as would a patchwork.
Among the conspicuous objects can be found, a sponge once forgotten in some sea breeze blue paint, some strings, a CD that the owner must still be looking for, fragments of glass from a bottle we suspect may have been consumed by Heitch and fiber such as stems from plants or dried wild flowers picked from the countryside.
Through various tricks that amount to a game, it’s as if Heitch wants to find and renew, to mix and match, to improve what is there and even to question it. In fact she comes up with possibilities that are not found through the application of formal esthetics. And in doing so she does not favour one technique over the others. What then does this imply?
