Last year, I was invited to design a third Brabantsedag poster. The previous two, like most of my work over the past 13 years, had been co-created through collaboration. But this time, due to circumstances, I found myself flying solo.
Those same circumstances also left me feeling completely lost. I was still working my way out of a depression that was fogging my creativity and my confidence. It left me questioning myself: “What is my solo art style? Can I still create something on my own that feels complete?” It had become hard to see beyond a blank piece of paper.
In search of direction, I looked back at what had always been my two big passions: animation and traditional ink painting. Having rarely combined the two in the past, I began to explore ways to do so.
As I started doodling ideas for the poster, I found myself imagining a moving version. Something that could carry the ‘Carnaval Unmasked’ story further. I pictured an animated sculpture made of ink paintings that would set a theatrical mood. I wanted to give Brabantsedag something a little extra, a living poster that would enhance the online campaign and reflect the festival’s spirit, while also giving myself room to experiment with my passions.
Luckily, the look this would result in was a perfect fit for this year’s theme. Together with the Brabantsedag PR team, we decided to embrace the bold black-and-white aesthetic – sucking out the explosive colors usually tied to carnaval to present it in a more theatrical way.
I filled a stack of blank papers with black and grey ink. I learned enough Blender to build a digital paper sculpture from the scans. Once the components were in place, I could easily animate them and frame a variety of shots.
Once I started seeing the rendered results, I gained a little more confidence. They evoked a feeling that I could create some pretty cool stuff this way. But also something new and genuinely me. It brought me another step closer to finding my way out of depression.
With many thanks to:
🖤 Christa van den Broek, Boukje van Ettro and Mark Damen (the Brabantsedag PR team) for having trust in my abilities, especially after opening up about where I was mentally.
🖤 Composer Robert Jung (Dreikelvin) for the music
🖤 Tableaux for the help with formatting
🖤 You, for watching and reading
– Matty Jorissen
Read the press release about the 66th Brabantsedag, with the theme “Carnaval Unmasked” (Dutch: “Carnaval Ontmaskerd”) here.
Brabantsedag is a really unique and cool way of storytelling using theatrical parade floats. Check their website out to discover more about it! The parade around the carnaval theme will take place on Sunday August 31, 2025 in Heeze, near Eindhoven.
