Tindermythology

Location: At home – Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

“Trust without bias”

Kira, the Goddess of Blind Trust, is the first Goddess I have met. Filled with excitement and feeling a litte nervous, did I engage in the project, without knowing what to expect and how it would be experienced by both Kira and me. I have drawn Kira at her home in Rotterdam, on the balcony.

She is surrounded by Chrysanthemum: a flower that repesents luck, loyalty, honesty and friendship. The Chrysanthemum grows when Kira’s trust in you grows too. She trusts people blindly, which can seem naive, but she has taught me that it is not about trusting every stranger, but that it is about trusting people without visual judgement, without the eyes. It is about being vulnerable, only enough to keep the conversation open and transparant. You need to have the courage to show your innerself before someone else is able to do that with you. This is the only way you can grow like a Chrsanthemum. Kira trusted me blindly: she let a guy she met through Tinder enter her home, who claimed that he wanted to draw a picture of her. Most of the women I matched with on Tinder thought I was a catfish with a bad pick-up line. They questioned my motives.The only question Kira had was: “when do we start?”

Locatie: Sagitta Creatives Studio – Breda, The Netherlands

“Keep moving”

Esperanza got me thinking: I don’t want to resist, but I do want to keep moving. The quest continued to the third Goddess: Daya the Goddess of Dance. I drew Daya in our studio. This was the most comfortable location for her. Daya dances as she walks. She’s light-footed as if she is floating through the clouds. Daya told me that movement doesn’t always have to be resistance. Movement is dance, and dancing is making steps. On my way to where I need to be, away from where I was. Keep moving because eventually you will feel the rythm.

Locatie: Park Valkenberg – Breda, The Netherlands

“Sometimes the cup of poison needs to be empty”

One of the most fundamental quantities in physics is force. Joline is the Goddess of these fundamental quantities. Arinna Ky told me that pain is a
beautiful power to use. Joline wanted to put that into practice. Lots of strenght is needed for that. Joline was drawn in Park Valkenberg and the evening continued in bars and cafes. It was a Monday night and I had to get up early the next day. Unfortunately, Joline told me that sometimes the poison cup really needs to be emptied. This will give you more strenght, she said..I did feel that, especially the next day.

Location: Hoog Catharijne – Utrecht, The Netherlands

“Too much choice makes people unhappy”

Nienke, the Goddess of Not Knowing, does not know many things about her future. Nienke is drawn in the Hoog Catharijne shopping center near Utrecht Central station. She leaves the uncertainty she has over her future for what it is. Nienke told me that “not knowing things” creates space and an open perspective in your head. You have to learn to accept the things you can’t change. Limiting yourself in choices is actually a valuable gift.

Location: Walking – Raamsdonksveer, the Netherlands

“When your mind is calm, so is the world.”

Eight Goddesses deep and we continue with Deems as the ninth Goddess. In the meantime, we are already many Tinder swipes further. It is a busy period with many impressions and the motivation in the project is weakening. When do I want to be ready? How am I going to shape this? What did I learn? My head is cloudy and the overview is hard to find. Deems, Goddess of Cool Tranquility, offered the solution. Deems loves ice skating. Contrary to me, I hate it. Deems was always cool and calm. I admire that about her. She told me, “When your mind is calm, so is the world.” If I gave ice a chance, it could feel warm too. We walked a lot and talked a lot. It was exactly what I needed at the time: a little walk. As my mind calmed down, I actually began to see how quiet the world can be, especially in a village like Raamsdonksveer.