I was born and raised in the Netherlands, close to the North Sea shores. I’ve always felt a strong connection to the sea. Moving to Wellington in 2012 provided me with an opportunity to live close to the ocean and enjoy watching marine life. The ocean ignited a creative spark and I started jade carving and drawing. In 2017 I took up training in the French Academic method with Tatyana Kulida in Wellington. This has become a journey into art, where I learn how to express the beauty of things, and explore my inner motivation, curiosity and perseverance. 

After living in New Zealand for 9 years, and the Covid 19 pandemic making it impossible to travel regularly to my family, I decided to move back to the Netherlands. My focus recently shifted from drawing to painting. I am painting mostly from life. Lately I have been exploring the outdoors. The shores of the North Sea and the land of the Dutch delta bring renewed inspiration with plentiful opportunities to be captured by cheeky birds, the sea, magnificent skies and ancient trees. As always, I am in search of beauty.