Jenny Ymker is interested in capturing her female protagonists in a tension between the real and imagined.  Her works originally begin as carefully staged photographs, which are then translated into highly complex and laborious woven tapestries, which the artist refers to as 'gobelins'.  These have a historical background, previously used as luxurious and insulating wall hangings in castles and palaces.  By focusing on seemingly domestic and 'feminine' settings, the artist often includes playful and intriguing elements and objects.  These suggest a hidden narrative and the idea of the female character breaking free of traditions and the confines of domestic life.  The unusual tapestry medium the artist adopts, often associated with female pursuits, furthers this notion of subversion and reclaiming and transcending the female narrative.

​

Jenny Ymker won the 2019 Luxembourg Art Prize, and the Francois Schneider Foundation contemporary art prize and St Leopold Friedens Anerkennungspreis in 2020.  The artist lives and works in Tilburg, The Netherlands.