Merette Uiterwaal (b. 1990, Amsterdam Zuid-Oost, Netherlands) is a visual artist whose work navigates the space between abstraction and figuration, challenging conventional perceptions of color. Living with color blindness—a condition affecting only 0.5% of women—she experiences the world through a limited spectrum, where hues merge and shift in unexpected ways. This perceptual difference is not a limitation in her practice but rather a catalyst for artistic exploration.

Her photography is not a mere documentation of reality but a reinterpretation of it, where movement and blur create an ethereal visual language. Light plays a crucial role, not as a passive element but as an active force that defines shapes, enhances textures, and creates contrast. Her images balance clarity and obscurity, visibility and disappearance, echoing the paradox of perceiving a world that is never fully seen.

Uiterwaal’s work explores the emotional and conceptual dimensions of color rather than its technical accuracy. She is fascinated by the tension between what is visible and what is felt—how color can be an experience rather than a fixed truth. Inspired by her discovery of color-correcting lenses in 2018, she investigates the shifting boundaries of perception, questioning how reality changes when seen through altered eyes. Her intuitive approach results in compositions where color is liberated from conventional harmony, revealing unexpected and poetic relationships between tones.

Beyond photography, Uiterwaal incorporates mixed media, including audio, ceramics, and experimental light objects, further expanding her exploration of perception. Her artistic practice is a continuous dialogue between limitation and possibility, where imperfection becomes a source of authenticity.

Uiterwaal’s work is an invitation to see beyond the expected, to question the certainty of vision, and to embrace the beauty of the unseen. Through her lens, color is not just a physical reality but an emotional and imaginative space—one that challenges us to look, remember, and feel anew.

You can also follow her on Instagram to see behind the scenes snapshots.

Or read about her work in this article (in Dutch only)