Penelope van Hoorn’s work explores societal veils and their impact on the human condition. She explores what we reveal and conceal as people, and how often beauty is lost to conformity.

An underlying language unifies her pieces, where the paint’s forms, colors, and textures express nature’s will to connect, surface, and be acknowledged. Van Hoorn often uses flat or gaussian backgrounds that offer a window to see what is going on under the surface.

Through her art, van Hoorn encourages the observer to consider the complete picture, free from veils, inciting a desire to truly see what lies beneath.

Her creative process involves layering initial grounds, often applying several layers to guide the picture toward its final manifestation. Each layer either reveals or conceals, telling a story in fragments. These layers invite curiosity about what lies hidden beneath them, often appearing bright, playful, or bursting through, waiting to be recognized. Van Hoorn views them as meaningful interventions. She aims for her work to feel like a moving, organic story, continuously growing and imbued with a sense of naturalness.

Professionally, Penelope van Hoorn has worked as a graphic designer for many years and holds an MA in Design Studies from Central St Martins in London.

She has worked as a professional full time artist since 2023.

Her work has been exhibited in both London at the Saatchi Art ‘Other Art Fair’ in 2024 and 2025.

Please feel free to contact me with gallery, commission or pricing enquiries.