In my work, I search for the fragility of men. I believe making mistakes and allowing space for gentler, more tender emotions – rather than anger and aggression – is essential. I explore the role of people, focusing on my position as a man. This concept stems from clumsiness, or as we say in Dutch, Knulligheid: the weakness of a man who does not conform to traditional masculinity. An emancipated man. The “loser” as a new figure in contemporary society.
I advocate for embracing human shortcomings and finding comfort in this role of “loser-ship.” Within this narrative, I confront themes of power, sadness and sincerity, challenging conventional ideas of strength and success. This leads to the question: To eat or to be eaten? What do you feel when you take a giant bite out of a cookie from your childhood? Do you control that feeling, or does it control you? To consume or to be consumed?
This tension – the balance between creation and destruction, power and vulnerability – draws me to painting and sculpting images of baking and sweets. When you bake, you create something new, only to deform and destroy it for satisfaction. Masculinity, like consumption, exists in this cycle of making and unmaking, shaped by expectations, broken apart, and redefined.
