Maartje Brok

Many people struggle with unhappiness. As a therapist, I hear my clients talk about feeling disconnected with themselves and others. I am intrigued by the layers of emotions and experiences, past and present, that contribute to feeling disconnected. As a photographer, I research how to translate these emotions into images. And as a therapist, I ponder: “are these emotions universal? And what does it take to feel connected again?”

Currently, I am working on a project called ‘Flindertje’, which is Dutch for Butterfly. The subject of ‘Flindertje’ is my mother’s traumas, her feelings of ‘disconnection’, and their impact on me. It is a research journey through previous family generations – a trip in which I eventually chose to break the chain of traumas and do it my way (connect).