Jorn Vlaanderen is a mixed media artist, exploring all types of mediums in his art. He graduated about a year ago in audiovisual arts and is currently focused on creating fine, small-scale works. He’s deeply driven by ideas and feels an obsessive need to express them. Some pieces are designed to sell, while others are intended for gallery exhibitions. His graduation project was about discovering a personal method for creating, specifically walking with no destination. Some of the creative practices he often uses are capturing sounds, taking photos, and transforming them into drawings.
Jorn has been at Contact for about three or four months, sharing a studio with two close friends. He values the tight-knit community, where people are friendly and supportive.
Right now, he’s working on an open call for a zine, seeking contributions from people who aren’t necessarily artists but have creative projects they work on, whether for themselves or for fun. His goal is to highlight unseen creative voices, using his network to help those interested in art to get started, and to connect with communities he’s not typically engaged with.
His inspirations include birds and Buddhist philosophy, along with Japanese minimalism, allowing his works to speak for themselves. He’s also writes poetry and is particularly inspired by haikus.
Jorn's graduation project continues to be very meaningful for him, as it marked the beginning of his dedicated artistic journey. It was a project that continuously evolved rather than concluding, inspiring a creative process that he still draws on today. The experience was as rewarding as the final piece itself, sparking practices and ideas that continue to shape his work two years later.