Portrait of a Muse no.2
MUSE. Denise Aimee Rijnen is a ceramic artist who finds strenght in stillness
Amsterdam, October 2018
In this dialogue with a muse we talk on honesty towards self, time in nature and the influence of yin on strenght.
Denise lives in the jungle, no not really, but her house is full of plants that reach from the floor to the ceiling and hang over you like an arc. What is your favorite place in this green oasis? ”Surely this here… in this kitchen, at this table. I really enjoy cooking and here I can read while preparing something. Would you like a cup of tea or this homemade mix? It's my favorite drink.
I am finally at the point where all ceramic tableware in the house is my own. They are one of a kinds or pieces with a flaw. I adopt them. I think, the process of working with clay ... It is almost something spiritual, to turn a lump of clay on a turntable into a consumer product. Take the clay for example, it took millions of years before it became clay. Before that it was a stone and before that another kind of stone, all forces of nature.
We measure everything with our lives. But our "speed" is so relative. I am now taking a system earth course at the VU. To better understand the processes of the matter I work with. From tectonic plates to what happens on the earth such as the weathering processes. It's something bigger than ourselves and then you become more humble towards matter. "
What you do permeates all parts of your life. I believe that is the epitome of authenticity. "I think it is so logical that what I do is reflected in everything. From making I learn to understand theoretical things and vice versa. I want to do an art project with the Rhine. take clay out of the river here and then travel all the way down the Rhine to bring the clay back to the mountain it comes from. I want to touch all things of the Rhine so not just the rivers, also the geological, economic and sociological aspect. How old people make trips on the river for example and from mythology. It seems very cool to work with all those facets of that river.”
Does being physically busy also affect your mind? "If I don't feel comfortable in my own skin and I turn a cup, then it won't work. Now I have less, because it is in my body. But certainly in the In the beginning I had to do nothing on a day like that. When playing you have to stay in center otherwise it goes wrong. Then I know how to take care of myself and take it easy. That's what I learn from listening to myself. Spirituality is of course also about being in your own center. I think that by turning and centering, I have also come to understand things better spiritually. That things have fallen into place ". Is it meditative then? "Sometimes yes, but you have to find a balance. You are focused, but you also have to relax a bit. If I have an order of fifty plates then I am just popping and then I count off, still 25 to go. But maybe that is also the case with meditation, that you are sitting it out now and then. Or have to keep calling yourself to it.
This morning I did what I want to do more often, but not always do: yoga. First Tibetan yoga and then a few yin exercises. Tibetan yoga is that you do five sets of movements and each You repeat movement 21 times, this has to do with the chakras of which you have seven. It is a meditative practice, because you keep repeating it. I intend to always do it, but I often go to the studio early and then it gets in the way. Then it's drinking hot water, making porridge, taking a shower. I often go to White label too, my friend roasts coffee beans and has a coffee shop around the corner. That's kind of my second living room. Often there are people from the neighborhood. I usually work alone in the studio, so it's also nice to have a chat.”
What do self love, self-esteem and self-worth mean to you? “Be honest with yourself. I have decided not to fly anymore. That's a very big statement to say, but I'd rather not do it anymore. You can really fool yourself with: 'it's just once' or 'everyone does it'. Only I notice that if I do fly, it makes me unhappy. Because you don't actually do what your feelings tell you, what you should or should not do. ”
What part of yourself, creatively, physically, emotionally or intellectually, longs for more love from yourself? ”I think I should give myself more freedom. That I can quickly go into a mode that I have to keep working and that I'm better at it now, but I could never really take a weekend off, for example. That you haven't planned anything and just spontaneously hang out with friends for a whole day. ”
Which part of yourself gets the most love? "That I allow myself to make mistakes, be creative. On the one hand, I can be very perfectionist, but I also have the confidence that it will work out anyway."
