One of my earliest memory is that of listening to the sound of the wind blowing through the flat looking out over the north sea in IJmuiden. The wind spoke like a voice, words that I could not understand, but feel somehow. Growing up we tend to lose that curiosity to be present to a quiet mystery. I always felt it was important to hang on to it. To not lose it. My work today is to articulate what is of the essence, bring it into the world, make people curious for what the unseen holds. 

I like coffee in the morning, afternoon walks, notes on scraps of paper.  atmospheric music, U2, Pine Tree Forests, mountains, oceans, airports, blackbird spring songs, attentiveness.

Dislikes: Cold feet, indifference, dental treatment, big spiders, almost missing a flight, removed Whats-app messages (mistakes are interesting). 

I believe in…

Make a child feel seen. 

You grow if you help others grow. 

I believe we have been given an authentic core and a creative responsibility to create new realities in this world.

There is a joy in this picture that still remains, but… different. Key components for creativity are wonder and determination. Children wonder about everything and are stubbornly determined to find out. They grow quickly. Jesus Christ advised people to be like children in order to gain new understanding. People were invited to believe in something greater than themselves, something we find hard as adults.

Wonder will draw us out of the comfort zone. It shouldn’t surprise us that growth is about play as much as mature determination.

Be curious for discovery again.

P.S. Have you ever noticed that the colors in older photos have a certain density? As if life was lived differently.

There is a path in a park that I have walked for years, in every season and variation of weather. Recently, I asked myself: why does this path not bore me after so many times? The answer that came up was simple:

Because it is different each day.

There is just enough to be found: birds, ponds with fishes, frogs, and greens, rabbits hiding around the corner. Every hour, day, and season has its signature. Have you noticed that the light is different after rain? Have you been taken by that musky odor in the evening? Each day brings something new. The path is an open-air exhibition of life. And that’s the reason why I keep walking—because no minute has ever been the same.

Don’t worry about tomorrow.

I love coffee. Though it affects creativity—caffeine stimulates the brain to think in straight lines, while creativity benefits from associative thinking. Drinking coffee is an act that is controversial to my intention of working creatively. Yet, good news: controversy is a known catalyst of creativity; it balances out.

So I drink coffee, with sugar. That makes me a controversial person. But kind-natured. Unless you take away my coffee…