With the pandemic, global panic has ensued inspired by the expected collapse in global industries and power systems – an anxious narrative about the livelihood of the capitalist system is being pushed down to every individual on the personal level; highly contradicting the state of things for each individual. For the first time, we’re forced to sit down. With our past, with our present, and with our future. With ourselves and with our environments. We’re forced to sit down and contemplate, we’re forced to pause and sit eye to eye with a new rhythm, with a new normal and learn to live with its otherness from the “normal” we supposedly want to get back to.

my illustration deals with the escape from civilization, to coexist with nature

This poster is made from a vintage deck of KAN-U-GO cards, an old British word game.
The deck is a hundred years old and still perfectly playable – a reminder of how things can simultaneously stay the same and evolve beyond recognition. This is my main takeaway from the surreal present we are experiencing : among all the current talk about radical change, we all yearn for the same things and feelings, in an overwhelming sense of immutability. And perhaps these two things can coexist.

The dialogue illustrates the insatiable need for ‘more’, regardless of need, use or purpose. ‘More’ is opposed to meaning, empathy and coexistence.

Coexistence simply means living together. That can be challenging for a society, but if you don’t want it or try it, you are excluding certain people. That leads to racism, sexism, fascism and death. Just do it like the œ in cœxist: coexist. The poster shows through the o and e 3 different points of decision.

This is the only ultimate choice we have.

In this case, “CO”, is mother earth, taking care of us, while we all try to deal with this pandemic.

This illustration has been created to raise the awarness of diversity and equality of races in our societies.

I am You You are Me We are ONE Loop.
cyclically we orbit, we allow the shadow through, we allow the light in, we shed our skin and allow rebirth, we release things overwrought and welcome tranquility, beauty, fresh energy, healing
United in a coil of existence, each unit within the sequence is crucial to the integrity of the whole.
We are One.

All of the artworks represent and want to create a dialogue about the fragility and fluidity of the term of coexistence. Even more nowadays, the term has shifted and distorted making us wonder what it means finally to coexist? And also with who? with the others? with nature? with ourselves?

A perspective is not right or wrong by default. It is simply what it is: the viewpoint of an individual person. Each of us has such a viewpoint; there will always be two sides to every story. In order to coexist in the future, we must be able to take both perspectives and try to understand them.

To coexist means to openly share our respect, validation, criticism and love with one another. Instead, we’re used to boundaries and hesitate to express ourselves truly due to shame or anxiety. Here, »may we love« isn’t a nervous question, but rather repurposed to be a cheerful invitation.

inspired by nature

Sometimes simple words
Accompanied by simple graphics
Cope best
With complex subjects
During regrettably complex times.

1. Coexist (Come In Peace)
2. Coexist
3. Coexist (Come Together)

….maybe the aliens are not the bad guys after all?

This a favourite work from 2019, a paper collage on wood panel 11.5 x 16.5 inches. I enjoy how the two figures coexist in the composition, there is tension and conflict but also the eternal calm and stillness captured in the original photograph by Bob Mizer.

Coexist is based on the childrens’ game of noughts and crosses. Which to a certain degree is a game of chance. Each player takes turns to place either a nought or a cross in a square. The object of the game is to try and get a complete line of noughts or crosses in a straight line. The player who achieves this first is the winner. So the Coexist graphic implies that if you play correctly you will produce a winning outcome.

Given the current situation, it is more important than ever to widen our view – away from a unidimensional perception and towards a 360° view. This requires not only a certain mindfulness of our immediate environment, but also a significant leap out of our comfort zone, which is as equally important. If the virus forces Germany to run up against its limits, one can only imagine how this situation affects countries with considerable worse starting points. #weallexist (reading direction: bottom to top)