Michelle Bergwijn (24): Artist, herbalist and (almost, haha) sexologist
Her favourite OG Vans Silhouette is the OG Slip-On Checkerboard

On the set of our shoot, we caught a glimpse of your creative process as you painted a beautiful visual from scratch. Can you tell us a little more about this process? For example, where do you find inspiration, and how do you then manage to express yourself on a blank canvas? 
My painting process is always very spontaneous. I never use sketches and mostly start with whatever colour and pattern I feel like at that moment. I then paint a face or body over it. It’s never really about the details for me, but more about the colours and movements that express my feelings on the canvas. During the shoot, I felt like creating round movements to symbolise womenhood, Mother Earth and female power. I like to use spiritual symbolism in my work because it turns the process of painting into a ritual for me.

Many of your artworks include the outlines of a female face, travelling across your paintings like a red thread. Who is she, and what does she stand for? 
The faces on my paintings are a reflection of myself at that moment. I’ve dealt with a lot of mental health issues like depression and anxiety. At certain times that made me feel like I wasn’t real or that I kept transforming into different versions of me, Michelle. A lot of the faces look a little lost or scared, whilst others look powerful and confident. Like one of my paintings that represents Hathor. I created Hathor in an empowering time filled with love, a time during which I found a safe space within my sexuality that I struggled with for a while because it can be discouraging to feel sexualised most of the time. It was hard for me to enjoy my sexuality in a healthy way, but painting has helped me a lot with this. Hathor btw is an Egyptian Goddess that stands for love, joy, sexuality and more.

Being a young female creative, what does the support and empowerment from other female creatives mean to you? 
It means a lot to be able to share your creativity with other women because it's the feeling of unity that makes art so special. Of course, I can just make stuff and let it rot away in my workspace, but to have the option to reach a group of women that have been through the same pain or joy as I did is a very beautiful thing. Also seeing other women do their thing is really motivating for me to keep doing what I’m doing. 

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Photography: Suus Waijers