spoonfuls of liquorish

The absolutely lovely Anthea of Spoonful magazine invited me to care for the Art Therapy feature in issue # 6. It includes a tutorial, of which this is a tiny sneak preview. You and I (in particular!) need to have a little patience, as issue 6 won't be available until the end of this year. Number 5, however, will be available soon. You can order it here!

Recently, I was asked to make a 'droppot' (liquorish pot) for a managing director to take with her into her new job. I suggested to her colleague it might be nice to fill the pot with kinds of 'drop' that refer to her director's qualities. This is what she emailed me: ..."I filled the pot with:  'Bielzendrop' - because you can trust and rely on J.; 'Trekdrop' - because J. is a strong and powerful woman; 'Smiley's' - because she's got a sense of humor; 'Boerderijdrop' - because of her love for animals; 'Sleuteldrop' - representing her success; and 'Halve maantjes' - refering to her spirituality."

Love it! Are you inspired? Find an overview of (all) kinds of 'drop' here.

To bring out the best

Like I said, getting ready for Noorderzon 2011! This is the photo which we'll use to promote our Grun(n) Gemaakt 'Living photo shadow box': dress up, step into our setting and you'll find yourself in the Alps even if you hadn't made plans to go abroad this summer :-)

And of course, dressing up brings out the best and most fun in creative beings!

A glimpse of our Noorderzon plans

A glimpse of our plans for Noorderzon Performing Arts Festival this summer: August 18-28. Just like last year, Sandra, Megan, Marjolein and I (unfortunately, Simone isn't participating) are joining hands again under the name of 'Grun(n) Gemaakt'. We'll be selling our hand made items in our shop, pouring attention tea in our Attention café and we'll be there with a new version of the Photo shadow box. Exciting! More later... 

Standing ovation

A reminder from the lovely Little Prince: "It's the time that you've spent on your rose that makes your rose so important." So, you'll know what to be aware of in case you are interested in ordering my 'Applause', which is gratefully featured in the June/July 2011 issue of magazine Noorderland (in bookshops as off today). You can order an 'Applause' for someone - or for yourself, because we ALL deserve one ;-) - here.

P.S.: too bad for the [.nl], which of course should be [.nu]...

Stories from Ghent

("An outing with mum", Gabrielle Wohmann)

Wandering through the old streets near Kraanlei in Ghent, Belgium last weekend, we stumbled upon Anina Soap Creatories, a (soap) studio run by the authentic & inspiring contemporary artist Karien Vandekerkhove. Karien makes 'conceptional soaps' by hand, using pure ingredients, olive oil and love only. I bought a deliciously smelling mint-ball and she also introduced us to her natural cold cream. Karien herself, the look & feel of her Creatories, the window, the logo, ... they are all one. The pictures speak for themselves, so all I'd like to add is a (freely translated) quote that Sarah (previous blogpost!) once sent me, and which also totally resonates with me and my own work:

"It's all stories.

Finally, one story is released.

It is prominent,

you can identify it.

But it needs all those stories

that lie underneath it."

- Martin Tissing

P.S.: Other must-visits in Gent: Mis-en-plis, Huiszwaluw, Spoonful of Sugar and Avalon.

Pay attention to Sarah, please!

In addition to being a visual artist, calligraphist and graphic designer, Sarah Zoutewelle writes articles, works as an artist in healthcare settings, gives creative workshops and trainings, and wrote, illustrated ánd designed this unique book on creativity and dementia care, poetically entitled 'Chocolate Rain'. Recently, Sarah has become more & more committed to raising consciousness around the importance of the role of art in society and related issues of government budget cuts, etc. She likes to focus on new ways to approach the arts and on alternative paths for artists.

One of Sarah's alternative ways-initiatives is the transformation of one of the rooms inside her house into a lovely little 'fine crafts' shop. For a certain period of time, (the work of) a particular artist is featured and for sale. This time, Sandra's work is in the picture! Find out more about the shop on the Spoonful-blog and learn more about Sarah's views on art on her own blog.

P.S.: And as if this woman isn't vibrant enough, Sarah's also a one of a kind attention giver. Last year in particular, she supported me in many different ways, of which sending me love & inspiration-filled envelopes each month is only one example!

Goud zoeken en zoiets simpels!

Interview met mij in Friesch Dagblad van woensdag 20 april jl. Mijn creatieve leven in vogelvlucht! Bijzonder hoe iemand je - mijn - innerlijke beleving in woorden vangt. Heel mooi gedaan door eindredacteur/journalist Gerbrich van der Meer. Bedankt!