Annelies van Druten

My series focuses on the self-healing journey of my mental and physical health. In life, I have experienced self-doubt in my Korean identity, burn out, anxiety, and body image struggles. Using the knowledge I have now, I wish I could revisit my past self to help guide her through the obstacles of insecurity, self-image, and negativity. In my artwork, I enable myself to do just that, through imagination and an open mind, with hope in reassuring my past self and showing that everything will be okay. As I continue my path of acceptance and recovery, my goal is to see life in a positive light.

My process begins by choosing a personal struggle to focus on, rough sketching, and noting down any feelings or memories I connect to the topic. To strengthen my themes, I use animal symbolism. For example, in “Flowing Along,” I used koi fish to represent longevity and perseverance. In “Fragile” I used butterflies to represent one’s beauty and grace. The broken wings imply the permanent damage to one’s self-esteem. To make my works come to life, I add sculptural elements that pop out, like cut paper and origami. This gives more liveliness across my pieces, spreading beyond the canvas borders.