collaborations
Being alone and working alone suits me, but working together and creating new things together is something I also love to do! I like to work with other people. I believe that sharing and inspiring each other often creates even more beautiful things than sitting alone at my drawing table (literally and figuratively).
scènes van de zee
pete's Surfboards
It has been a special journey working with Esther van Haren and bringing her beautiful words and images to life in this project. We started on a rainy day in the fall of 2022 and I sent the last print-ready files to Esther at the end of August this year. Here you can find the full message of the launch and more photos: link to message.
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Want to know more about this project or place an order? Visit: www.scenesvandezee.com.
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In the spring of 2022, Peter from Pete's Surfboards approached me. He had seen my site through the grapevine and was looking for an illustrator for customized boards for his customers. Very nice collaboration.
Click here to see Ragnar's board
Click here to see Felte's board
oLLygoods
While following his great workshop (I built my first surfboard under his supervision) Olly asked me if I wanted to spend 'some of my time' on making his brand more sustainable, an extension of the boards. After three good conversations I felt 'yes!'
Together we founded 'oLLygoods', an extension of 'Olly' his brand Ollywood Surfboards from Scheveningen. Currently there are a number of products available with the unique drawings of Olaf de Vries himself. The digital elaboration was my responsibility.
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In the summer of 2021, Suus from Atelier Sand crossed my path. 'Hey Marleen, what a cool site you have and all those shopping baskets on Instagram and such,... did you make them yourself?' The answer is 'yes, I did that myself with the help of Wix (online platform)'
Suus had been running a successful company for over two years, but the only thing that was still missing was a website. We worked out her plan together and her webshop is now alive and kicking!
Partly because of creating this site, we came up with a new idea. I was suddenly drawing on leftover pieces of leather. Leather to integrate into her fanny packs in this case. In the summer of 2022, we also attended a number of (art) markets together.
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de oplichterspraktijk
In February of 2022 I was approached by Kelly van Rossum. When Kelly asked me very enthusiastically to collaborate on a work of art for her exhibition.
I was super excited. I asked Kelly to call each other the next day; so I got more feeling. We spoke enthusiastically about our work and all kinds of things. Kelly works for Edding and was introduced to my work through Instagram.
After a week of thinking I thought 'ok maybe I shouldn't do it'….but than Kelly contacted me 'my boyfriend thought of a Chameleon'….WOW! To me this was Karma! Karma Chameleon. That's how it was meant to be and now it becomes something of us together. Just when I get close to my feelings again and would prefer to flee, there is the answer; Chameleon; my prey!
So straight to this goal. I grab my pencil and start sketching. The lines then flow with a lot of speed onto my paper.....
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Click here for the result and the symbolism.
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During a trip through North Devon and Cornwall I drove with Mark past a beautiful National Trust spot where a number of Belly Boards were set up outside. I stopped and Mark calmly said 'you might as well pull over, because there is kind of a line of cars behind us, haha'. If you know the narrow roads in England a little, you can imagine what this would have looked like....
I bought a nice souvenir here; a wooden bellyboard. We were talking to Andy and as it sometimes goes, we were chatting as if we had known each other for years. I gave Andy my card and said; 'look, I make this'. I jokingly said that I would like to draw one on one of the bellyboards. Andy then said 'As in a collab you mean?'
The next day Andy and I texted each other at the same time and we drove past him on the way back from Widemouth and so I took a bellyboard with me, which I was going to sign for him.
This resulted in 1 original board; FUNN belly board and another one with prints of some of my drawings, on display at Cruel & Curious in the last weekend of September 2022. My thought had come true; my drawings exhibited on the beautiful wooden Banyan Belly Boards.
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esther creative management
Esther Willems came to me in the autumn of 2021 with the question whether I would like her first story could support with illustrations. Crazy! Especially since I was with her that same afternoon, taking pictures of her daughter's unicorns, to draw. What a beautiful child and so sensitive .... secretly I am too ;).
Ester shared her first draft of her story with me and I was able to translate her words into illustrations that fit her story to suit. A collaboration in her and my way.
Wonderful to do! Follow this link to download the story for free: https://estercm.nl/shop/downloadbare-pdf/pdf-fiene-en-de-maaneenhoorn/.