Curiously lines scratch and scroll across the expanse of white. Sometimes forming groups of fashion folk and other times coy looking leafy plants, but always marked in his signature palette of primary colours. Shining with expression and energy, Jordy Van Den Nieuwendijk once held a public funeral for his artistic style as to end it and to be reborn with new creative freedom.
Light-hearted liberation sings out from all of his pieces and is perhaps why his commissions list reads like the compendium of who's who in coolness. Nieuwendijk’s past clients include Vice, Kitsuné, Colette and Apartmento all of which clearly wishing to express their worth of that moment's particular vibe through this joyous and youthful artistic style.
What’s inspiring your work at the moment?
I just saw Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman in the cinema, which is as inspiring as the director’s name. The movie tickled my senses like a good book does. Or actually like that one book I read did. Birdman didn’t come close to Top Gun though produced by Ridley Scott’s brother. I mean, take the kiss scene where Charlie (the girl) follows Maverick (the boy) outside to his bike after Maverick walked away after a short moment of irritation. Mavericks, clearly annoyed, climbs on his bike. Charlie walks up to him, tries to talk to him, while Mavericks starts his bike making a whole lot of noise. He scream’s something like ‘What? I can’t hear you?’ and drives off. Charlie, also annoyed now, jumps in her 1957 Porsche Speedster, and follows him. An adrenaline pumping high speed chase follows. Both bike and convertible brake with screaming tires in front of Mavericks house. They scream some things for a minute while Charlie all of a sudden declares her feelings for Maverick followed by a passionate kiss. Take My Breath Away (by Berlin) starts playing on the background while we look at a classic American sunset. My goodness. It might even be this movie (and me driving around in a Fiat Panda recently) that has inspired me to do a car themed exhibition in Düsseldorf (opening February 7th).
What made you want to die and be reborn as an artist- was it not possible to do this as a gradual exploration?
I guess after living with my alter ego for over five years, I could not just simply stop doing that. I cared so much for him. I took him to cinema's, swimming pools, and the zoo once. In the end I became jealous of him, and hated myself for his success. i figured he had to go. I'd like to think of myself as a kind person, but that one week, after enough glasses of Campari, I decided to put him down. 
What would you be doing if you weren’t doing this?
I would be a carpenter. I would be living in a wooden house, sitting on a wooden stool, behind a wooden desk, working with some wooden tools producing things made out of wood. 
And if one of my wooden figures looses his marbles, and starts screaming things about real boys and growing noses all of a sudden, I will quite happily organize a funeral and memorial service again. Plan B will be living in a house made of aluminum, sitting on an aluminum chair, behind an aluminum desk, working with aluminum tools… you get the idea.
As well as drawings and sketches you have also experimented with interior good such as rugs and mirrors – what’s your favourite type of canvas?
My favourite type of canvas would be - are you sitting down? - canvas. Nothing special here. I prefer canvas over most other materials. Maybe I do like to paint on wood, when wood is around a canvas. I don’t like to paint on my clothes, but this happens all the time, no matter what I try.
Who inspires you most as an artist?
Many people inspire me (Hi, AK). To be more specific, at the moment I am looking at the works of artists like Raoul de Keyser, Howard Hodgkin, Claude Viallat, Ron Gorchov and Sam Francis. But I must admit that Beyonce is a great inspiration to me too. Ever since I read a tweet saying “We all have the same 24 hours that Beyonce has in a day” or something like that. That woke me up. I thought my goodness I have to be more productive or something. Draw a bit more and all. I even started drinking coffee. Boy and am I regretting that.
What is your ideal creative space?
Grey floors, white walls, plenty of space. Brushes and paint on trolleys so they can follow me around. Dog in the corner. A space where I can make a mess, surrounded by my books, music and daylight. That is the dream that makes me change sheets in the morning. 
What's next?
There are a few things I like to achieve before turning thirty around September this year. See my parent’s more often instead of my iMac, travel to cities like London a few times a month, continue going to the beach with my dog every morning, get my motorcycle license AND my favourite, to make more paintings instead of drawings.
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