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The differences and contrasts of our World and Universe give birth to new ideas and new creations. Each story is beautiful within itself, to be told to others to teach, to flourish, to unite and to recreate.
Artistic expression
Dodo Newman is an abstract expressionist artist living in Berlin, Germany. Throughout her various life experiences in different parts of the world with people from wide range of backgrounds she has grown the inner knowing that we are all part of our universe, that we all belong to this vastness as One in different forms and ways.
Because of Newman’s background, connecting people through art has been and is a recurring intention in all parts of her artistic endeavours. Our dreams and life paths are about our possibilities. Newman talks about these through her artworks. In her words: “everything comes from passion, persistence and belief.”
The art of Dodo Newman can be understood by starting from the eastern meditations, however the intuitive world of the surfaces shows European roots. Her lyrical abstract expressionism was born from the secrets brought from the Far East and the Middle East. She sees our universe as belonging to us just as we belong to it in our physical built up, in our mental curiosity towards it and in our spiritual connectedness.
What mostly characterises Newman’s art is renewal, continuous reinvention of her artist Being and her deep human messages. Uniqueness comes hand in hand with Newman’s life path, with the cycle of life and with the time and patience that is dedicated to create something new, with the persistence to make a dream come true.
These are the recurring messages in Newman’s art forms, inspirations in whichever way they translate themselves, whether it is with traditional materials or with innovative, new mediums. As art critic Zoltán Fejér highlights, Newman brings with herself her own cosmic clouds. She received her artistic energies to win over the world’s reacting forces. Newman honestly believes in a self-creating way of her character in the goodness, love of all People. Her empathy made her grow early into a distinct artist.
Renewal is life energy, love. It is the purpose of all living beings, Newman’s art is a reflection of this movement. Her intention with renewal is to give life to new visions, to understand the main source of life. What interests and moves Newman most is what we cannot see with our physical eyes. This flow of passion, love and what she gets in return from people being inspired by what Newman creates, is what keeps her creating and alive. She is passionate to bring these things alive, to give them visible forms, textures, colours. The beauty that surrounds and that is within us is often a fleeting moment or something inexpressible through words. It is her aim to give life to this beauty into the world we see.
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She has been able to distance herself from the ordinary conventions of our days, into which trap many contemporary artists fall and suffer. Newman is an absolutely creative, bold and deliberate artist, her style has a unifying creator character. - Zoltán Fejér, art critic
This is why the universe, the space has always inspired her. It beholds the powerful energy which is beautiful, mystical, undefinable with words. Newman’s ultimate aim is to give back the resonance and memory of this energy to others so that they can stop for an instant, to immerse in this wonderful world of imagination.
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Most of Newman's projects and dedications aim to unite people through art with the ultimate goal to bring the contrasts and differences together united by dreams, beauty, hope and love.
Cultural project linking together 43 nations Cultural project dedicated to the individual memories of the passengers of the Titanic ship 2009-2011 . Berlin, Germany
Red Cross France co-operation Special art collection created for the benefit of the victims of the Haiti Earthquake 2010 . Cannes, France / Berlin, Germany
Educating the future generation Teaching about visions to University students as well as publishing a motivational book on innovation 2012 . Monte-Carlo, Monaco
Artwork to unite Monaco and South Africa Unique artwork created in the name of love and unity for the Princely couple of the Principality of Monaco 2012 . Berlin, Germany / Monaco Cultural changes over 100 years & borderless art
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As a person who grew up in different continents, experiencing the faces of different cultures, Newman often uses her art to raise human awareness and to inspire others.
100th Anniversary of the TITANIC
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Awareness
100th Anniversary of the
TITANIC Cultural Commemorative Project envisioned by
Dodo Newman
Borderless Art Bringing together 12 countries, uniting them through their 100 years of culture, borderless and without politics 2014-2015 . Berlin, Germany
Art is Fun / Children for Children Painting with 29 children and offering 100% of the proceeds of their paintings to other children in need via CARITAS 2017 . Berlin, Germany
Cultural project linking together 43 nations 2009-2012 . Berlin, Germany
Red Cross France co-operation 2010 . Cannes, France / Berlin, Germany
Motivated by a deeply personal aspect, between 2009-2012 Dodo Newman worked on the Titanic cultural project. Her creative works highlight the human aspect of the tragedy of the legendary ship and Newman dedicated over 500 artworks to various passengers — irrespective of their national background, status or label — of the Titanic.
In 2010, after the devastating Haiti earthquake with it’s catastrophic magnitude of 7.0 Mw, Dodo Newman accepted to create 20 plexiglas artworks for the benefit of the victims of the disaster.
The project also aimed to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the ship, which year was also the 100th Anniversary of the birth of Newman’s beloved grandmother. Remembering the individual families and personalities Newman also dedicated her project to her personal hero, her grandmother. The project conjures a poignant image of people boarding the Titanic led by the same hope, dream and aim to find happiness in life, just as so many of us today, unaware that they were destined to share a tragedy of unimaginable magnitude. They came from every walk of life: personnel from the ship; the rich and famous; professionals; the poor, seeking a new life. Friends, families and strangers alike, they were to be linked in collective memory forever. Newman’s grandmother passed away in 2011, in the 100th year of her life, but months after the sad news Newman’s human commemoration project was rewarded with another human life, her daughter Faye Martha.
The project ran hand in hand with Red Cross France and aimed to support the importance of the reconstruction of this colourful island, whereby Newman offered 100% of the incomes for the noble cause. Newman created 20 artworks for the project and each of them were named after a different Haitian city and in colours of the specific Haitian culture, reflecting its beauty and cultural vibrancy, to be protected and reconstructed.
Educating the future generation 2012 . Monte-Carlo, Monaco
Artwork to unite Monaco and South Africa 2012 . Berlin, Germany / Monaco
Dodo Newman believes that an artist has the responsibility to educate and form the society through her art, artistic messages and visions. Driven by her philosophy she aims to share her thoughts and experiences with her audience in multiple forms.
Highlighting the importance of unity in today’s society, Dodo Newman created a special artwork dedicated to HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco and HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco, symbolising faith, love and the potential of new possibilities.
Beside being a published author and a speaker, Newman also turns her attention towards the future generations. In the teachings for university students for example at the International University of Monaco, Newman aimed to give back to students the notion that change, transformation is a basic element of life and challenges are part of it.
This special symbolical project combined many elements into one. It is created with symbolical materials such as coal, diamond, resin to celebrate the cycle of life, including love, birth and death.
Through her interactive speeches Newman challenges others with her artistic perspectives to start to question things around them, what they hear, read about, to create new realities for themselves outside the box. Newman’s favourite topics are acceptance of art in the modern society, including appreciation, motivation as well as women artists, human awareness and transformation of society towards a peaceful and liveable world.
The composition is also divided in the middle and as the contrasts of the two parts are blending into each other they form one united piece. One side representing South Africa and the other the Principality of Monaco. One of its part is displayed at the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation.
Borderless Art 2014-2015 . Berlin, Germany During her “dive” into the research of 100 years of the Titanic ship, Dodo Newman was amazed by the fascinating fact that the passengers on it came from over 43 nations. Back in 1912 the Titanic ship was a place which brought together many cultures from various parts of the world, mainly in the name of hope and new life. Driven by her fascination of the individual human stories Newman decided to link the past and the present through culture, hope and art. The Borderless Art project envisioned by Newman invited 12 different countries to participate and to display their 100 years of cultural changes and heritage, linked to Newman’s artistic creations during an event series. The Berlin based embassies, representing the selected countries had the possibility to showcase their cultural developments in a joint event as well. Although the backgrounds of the participating nations are different they worked together during the project hand-in-hand, without thinking in borders or politics. The most fascinating aspect of the venue was how these countries found mutual links through the Titanic project and triggered by this, how openly they discovered each other’s heritage. As the end result of the project a printed and online publication was realised and widely published for cultural education purpose. The project that Newman visualised and realised was almost like a reflection to our present times, whereby the movement of people from one country to another in the name of hope and new life is an actual reality, just like more than 100 years ago. Newman’s message is that our times and physical spaces might be different but the hope, faith and dreams are the same for all of us. Where there is appreciation of culture and art, the borders diminish, overriding our physical differences for the aim of transforming our views and our worlds.
Art is Fun / Children for Children 2017 . Berlin, Germany By becoming a mother, Dodo Newman‘s horizon opened up also to the creative universe that children have. Besides passing on to her daughter the power for imagination and creation, Newman realised that painting with children can add to the betterment of the future generation as well as enhance and broaden her own visions. This is how the idea came to Newman to create a project together with the children of her daughter’s kindergarten. The objective of the project from one side was to give children the opportunity to have fun and enjoy themselves while painting in a free joyful way, handling new materials, mixing their own colours and expressing themselves in a new way through fun. The project had also a higher vision, to give back to other children in need with the paintings created by 29 children, by giving 100% of the proceeds from the exhibited paintings to other children in need through the non profit organisation CARITAS. This is how the “Art is fun - Children for Children” exhibition and auction was realised after 8 months of the project.
Artistic journey The soul of an Artist develops from the journey she takes. Each and every moment is there to form her artistic destiny. Visions are born from the daily impacts of the dark and light, finding their ways and forms. Newman’s life was filled with many journeys already in her very young age. Growing up in a diplomatic family she experienced the travels and the intense cultural changes as a child. Living in and experiencing the contrasting worlds of poverty, wealth, dictatorship, communism and democracy the young Newman’s mind was already shaped around the colourful human souls. Newman also developed her open minded thinking through these rich cultural experiences, living in many homes with many native languages. This reflects in the main themes of her artistic messages, aiming to communicate the Oneness of humanity. She was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1974 and already in her early life years she was introduced to many cultural environments by her diplomat father who raised her alone. The first pages of her memories are tied the most to India, where she was only two years old when the family moved to New Delhi. For the young child it was the first impact of extremities of our human existence: extreme poverty and wealth, spiritual openness and awareness as well as the notion of Love, which rises above all physical differences. As Newman’s artistic creations often reflect, India also had a deep impact on Newman’s senses with its vibrant colours, flavours and scents. Growing up without the frills of modernity in
Madras and New Delhi she was transformed by the dreams and colours of India, giving rise to her keen interest in colours and drawing. Later on when her family moved back for a short period to Hungary, Newman was confronted with the next life contrast, which was communism. Living in Budapest she experienced limitations that gave her the maturity of understanding the differences of life situations already at her early teenager years. In this contrasting new environment Newman never gave up her freedom and her artistic imagination continued to develop, she quickly became the first in her art classes. After Hungary the family moved to a third and yet very different country and culture. Iran gave Newman the true opportunity to discover her inner side and to explore her artistic Soul. Persian and Islamic culture had effects on Newman’s painting. She learned to use pastels for her drawings from an Iranian artist and in the summer vacations she went to Paris to artistic schools to develop further her skills. Few years after her studies in Iran, Newman entered a well-known Italian fashion design school in Florence, Italy. She followed her studies in Rome. This period in Italy opened up for Newman a whole new universe of aesthetics, beauty and energy as she embraced the ever so nearness of Italian art. Following some years of seeing the world and seeking her path in the different countries, cultures Dodo Newman returned to the land where she was born, to Hungary to continue the search of her own path. It was a period of inner seeking and conflicts between expectations and inner freedom.
In Hungary, (between 2005 and 2008) Newman experimented and developed a new artistic technique, her signature plexi-resin art. This new form of artistic expression was a base of many of her future awareness projects. After a national media feature on her art, in 2007 a well established Hungarian painter, József Burkus approached Newman to give his wisdom and knowledge of artistic skills over to her. During 4 months of apprenticeship, Burkus gave her the first tools to discover her true path and language to express her inner messages in the form of art. This is the period when Newman’s artistic language formed into abstract expression, mixed with expressionism and lyricism. One year later in September 2008, triggered by the richness of new artistic skills Newman got a strong calling when she decided to choose to open her wings in Berlin, Germany. Although Newman creates multiple international projects, working with different countries, Berlin became her main base for creation and inspiration. After moving to Berlin, Newman started to dare to have even bigger visions, related to her life experiences. This was the period when she moved away from single artworks and gallery exhibitions to global projects, whereby she could combine art with cultural issues and human messages. Her awareness projects are the grounds for her to form a broader audience through her art and artistic visions. Newman is a single mother of one. Her daughter Faye Martha was born in 2012, who showed the positive early signs of the inherited artistic expression. Between 2014 and 2016 Newman experienced a dark emotional period fighting for her daughter as well as her art as her calling. Despite being a single mother Newman never gave up on her calling for art and she has ever since managed the equal balance between her daughter and her visions. Being a mother as well has transformed Newman’s artistic expression to a new level, triggering deep messages for the next generation. Understanding the periods in Newman’s life one can discover the cultural influences in the richness of the details, the brightness of the colours and the play of lights and shadows in her artworks as well as her sensibility to express the deep messages for humanity of her various life experiences in her large scale projects. Using her awareness of oneness and beauty, Newman tells us stories with each and every artwork and vision of hers.
Artistic periods
Early years 1974-2002
Rediscovering art 2003-2005
Finding abstract 2006-2007
Apprenticeship 2007-2008
Experimenting a new technique 2005-2010
Spreading wings in Berlin 2008-2010
Plexiglas series 2009-2012
The “Blue� era 2013-2014
Converting fear to love 2015-2016
Rebirth & finding the light 2016-2017
Early years . 1974-2002
Lobo
Marlene
Fashion drawing
Rediscovering art . 2003-2005
Thinking Moment in Greece
Silence on the sea
Little girl dreaming
In the desert
Children of the desert
Finding abstract . 2006-2007
Butterfly
Life inside a flower
Planet
Sunrise after a storm
Close-up of the magical wings of a butterfly
Merging together
Apprenticeship . 2007-2008
Heaven and hell
Cobra
Racing life on Earth
Venice in my dreams
Flamingos
The Beginning
Fertility
Magic carpet
Immortality
Dream of a woman
Experimenting a new technique . 2005-2010
Spreading wings in Berlin . 2008-2010
When a star dies II.
Rebirth of Phoenix
Love
Energies II.
The Dream
Plexiglas series . 2009-2012 . Haiti series (2010)
Petit Goave
Haiti
Jacmel
itiaH
Saint-Marc
Jeremie
Marmelade
Milot
Plexiglas series . 2009-2012 . 100th Anniversary of the Titanic series (2009-2012)
Selected samples of the 500 artworks dedicated to honour the individual stories of the passangers of the Titanic.
Plexiglas series . 2009-2012 . Artwork to unite Monaco and South Africa (2012)
One side of the 300 cm long artwork created for Monaco‘s Princely couple. The artwork includes real diamonds, Swarovski crystals and an original piece of coal from the Titanic ship.
The “Blue” era . 2013-2014
Top line, from left to right: - Heart lines - Supernova II. - Light shining through the atmosphere - Falling through layers - Turner‘s storm Bottom line, from left to right: - Supernova I. - Frozen moment - Swirl - Seen and unseen
Converting fear to love . 2015-2016
Left side, from left to right: - Transformation - Majestic waves II. - Stargazing Right side, from left to right: - Majestic waves I. - The light, the dark and the stars
Rebirth & finding the light . 2016-2017
My love explodes in the universe
Sunrise on Iceland
Flying free
It all comes together
Reflection of light making its way through
The universe is our garden
Moment feeling like eternity
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