Using images to create awareness

For Carlyn Westerink, alumna Illustration Design, her time at ArtEZ Academy for Art & Design in Zwolle was like a playground to develop her own style and to experiment. “The course is about much more than just illustrating, it’s about telling stories and creating awareness through images.”

At the start of her course, Carlyn thought of becoming a teacher. “But foremost I became a very good illustrator,” she says. Her thesis included a book based on the theory of her research: the symbiosis with the inhumane world.

It’s about the gap between humans and nature. The book contains a wandering map that gives the reader a different perspective on living together with nature. It’s a philosophical game, a stimulus for thought meant to stimulate the consciousness.

A bridge towards social context

During her education, Carlyn was challenged to broaden her view of the world and to develop herself further. “I like to philosophise about the system in which we exist. I always try to build a bridge to social context, so that viewers are pushed to think.” Teachers motivated Carlyn to break free from her old patterns. “I am very grateful for that, because I was caught in an irregular process of portraits with bright colors and collage-like techniques.”

How about teaching?

Now that she has graduated, Carlyn wants to start interdisciplinary collaborations. “Together with the city poet of Zwolle and a composer I founded Wervel Collectief. It’s so enriching to work together.” She plans to follow a master’s degree in Art Education or a part-time training in Fine Art and Design in Education. “Maybe I’ll be a teacher after all,” she says.

Image: Finals work by Carlyn Westerink

Beeld: Afstudeerwerk van Carlyn Westerink