Interview by Jimon

1-Where did you grow up, and where do you live currently?  I grew up in a suburb near Amsterdam, where I still live today. It’s a very boring and uninspiring place, so I’m hopefully moving soon.

2-How would you describe Thom Vreeken?  I think my Instagram page shows a side of me that I don’t really show otherwise. It’s definitely a much darker side, and I don’t like sharing that side with people usually, but doing it through this definitely makes it easier to do.

3-Your Instagram name is Thom2679 what is the origin of the name?  Funny enough, it’s the username Instagram came up with. It made me realise that we’d like to think that we are very important and unique as individuals, but after all, we’re just another number.

4-Why so anonymous in a world where everyone wants to be famous?  I mean, I wouldn’t say I’m anonymous, I just think it’s unnecessary to have a face and a full name with the artworks. Personally, I often like to forget that art is even made by human beings, it adds to the magic of it. To then see someone’s face with it, kind of gets rid of that magic for me.

5-Did you have any official training for art?  No, I did not. In fact, my art teacher at school hated me, because I never did the things as she taught me. One time I decided to make a horror film instead of a documentary, which obviously wasn’t appreciated so much. So yeah, I think I wouldn’t really be suited for art school.

6-How long have you been making art and what lead you to start?  I’ve been interested in art and making art since I can remember. I used to remake paintings of artists that my father liked, then he put them up on the wall. Since last year I’ve been taking it more seriously.

7-What is the reasoning behind defacing the characters in your paintings?  Well first of all, I don’t really like to talk about meanings of paintings, because I think the feeling is more important than the actual meaning. But since I was a kid, I’ve always been intrigued by hidden faces, like masks or face paint or whatever. It obviously has a mysterious aspect to it, but also something that isn’t human, which I find very interesting. Another reason I like to deface characters is to give people the possibility to relate to it in whichever way they want, because the human emotions aren’t visible. That way people can see what they want to see, and they will find their own meaning in the works.

8-Have you ever come across a piece of art that you could not or did not want to stop looking at?  Yes definitely. In fact, it happens quite frequently. The last time was when I looked at ‘Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion’ by Francis Bacon for the first time. I’m not exactly sure what it was that drew me to it, but I must’ve stood there for at least 15 minutes.

9-How did you acquire your style?  I mostly acquired my style by trial and error. Only because I did not study art. I see something I like, and I try to copy elements of it, without knowing the techniques in the original piece. And I have developed my own way of working, resulting in a style.

10-What influences you as an artist?  A lot of things influence my work. In fact, sometimes I feel like it’s too many things. I sometimes would like to be able to stick to a certain style or idea for a lot longer, so I can really explore it, but I guess that’s not for me at this point.

11-What kinds of art hang on the walls of your home?  At the moment, I really only have one actual artwork up on a wall. It’s a print of ‘They Don’t Bite’ by the amazing artist (and friend) Julia Soboleva. It is definitely one of my favorite artworks, so I’m very happy to have a print of it.  Other than that, I really like things that are not actually meant as art but still look like it to me. So I have quite a few things like biology posters from school hanging on my walls.

12-How do you describe success as an artist?  This is a really difficult question, because I’m not too sure. Nowadays, it seems like success is about the amount of support you get, mostly over the internet. Or maybe the amount of artworks you sell. But obviously, that’s not what success is really about. I personally feel that I have succeeded in my work when it makes someone feel a certain thing. Of course, it doesn’t have to be the same feeling that I had when I made it, but as long as they experience a strong feeling, I am happy with that.

13-Do you have a place/person/thing that you visit for inspiration?  Not really a specific thing, no. I find inspiration in many things. Mostly, I find it in people, sometimes in myself. But then again, I can also be inspired by something I see on the streets, or even something I dream. So anything really.

14-Name three things you can’t live without in your studio?  Newspapers are definitely the first thing, I use them a lot for all kinds of things. Other than that, I’m not too sure what else I couldn’t live without, other than the paint of course.

15-If you could have dinner with 3 artists living/dead who would be at your table?  Very difficult question… First three that come mind are Robert Rauschenberg, Rebecca Horn and Andy Warhol.

16-How would someone find you on Social media?  @thom2679 on Instagram! That’s about all I use really…