About me

Hello, nice to meet you!

My name is Roman van Gelder! And how cool you found me!

I am a self-taught painter living in the Netherlands, born in Rotterdam. I started drawing at an early age. Many days were spent on watching 80s and 90s cartoons, reading comics, and making drawings. This gave me pure joy and happiness. I was always in awe of the work of other artists. Their craftsmanship to create a fictional world, and their ability to transfer an idea into a drawing, cartoon or painting inspired me greatly… and lit up a spark.

Firstly, I graduated from the Grafisch Lyceum in Rotterdam in 1997, which is a professional Institution for innovative education in the Netherlands in the fields of Media, Design and Technology. In 2001 I got my bachelor for Communication and Design Management at the University of Inholland in Rotterdam. 

While painting is a hobby, I love to do it… and hope to make other people happy too. So, in the evenings, during the weekends, I spend my time on drawing and painting. Creating an original painting is a personal journey that helps me to wander through a conceptual world.

Creating an original painting is a personal journey that helps me to wander through a conceptional world.

Roman van Gelder

How did I started painting?

I started painting a couple of years ago, in 2020, just before Corona hit. My father-in-law, a retired architect, challenged me to do more with my creativity. And since he is a painter too, that old creative spark within me, began to lit up again. And so, I took the dive and jumped into the world of painting. In an instant, I was hooked. I started watching endless “How to paint” YouTube video’s, reading all kinds of creative and art books, and listening to inspiring art podcasts. All with the objective to become better and better. Converting my passion into this creative outlet.

What kind of topics do I paint?

I love to paint all sorts of things. Whether it is a portrait of one of my kids, flowers, an animal, or a beautiful landscape. In every topic, I am trying to catch every aspect of dark and light, with bright colors and a mix of realism with expressionism. Always to evoke some kind of emotion to the viewer. 

A painting should evoke some kind of emotion. Whether it is joy, happiness, sadness or opening a door to a nice memory.

Roman van Gelder

Thank you, for reading this introduction, and hopefully it sparked some joy in you too. And please have a look at my portfolio.

In case of any questions or commissions please feel free to reach out to me…

contact @ romanvangelder.com (without the spacings)