Rapunzel

oil and oil pastels on paper, mounted on panel

100 x 80 cm

2026

In this reimagining of Rapunzel, Horowitz weaves a visual mythology where human and natural forms bloom into each other, blurring the boundaries between transformation and emergence. Figures seem to grow organically, like delicate stems pushing through narrative soil - children emerging from flower petals, characters rising from the textured bark of trees. The painting whispers of fairy tales before their softening, where nature is not a backdrop but a living, teaching force that wounds and heals in the same breath. Here, myth is not a fixed story, but a fluid landscape of becoming, where identity is as malleable as a root finding its path through darkness.

Fairy tales are our oldest psychological maps, repositories of collective wisdom that speak to the most fundamental human experiences of loss, transformation, and resilience. They are not mere children's stories, but profound narratives that reveal how we navigate vulnerability, power, and personal metamorphosis. In Horowitz's work, these ancient stories become living landscapes - each brushstroke a testament to the enduring power of narrative to reshape our understanding of self and world.

Roza Horowitz, born in Moscow in 1987, experienced early cultural displacement that would later inform her artistic practice. Her journey from Russia to the Netherlands at age six laid the foundation for themes of identity, adaptation, and cultural heritage that weave through her work.

In her current practice, Horowitz navigates between cultural memories and present observations, creating works that speak to both personal and universal experiences. 

Horowitz’s work is held in significant private collections, including those of the Amar Foster Jenkins Trust, Cees Dam, Bas Kuijper, Jaap Sleper of Gallery Utrecht, and Johan van Oord of the Royal Academy of Arts, The Hague.