Diede Bongertman: “I often wondered if I was artistic enough”
- Design
After secondary school, Diede Bongertman (29) wanted to go her own way. Off the beaten path, with no sterile, looming lecture halls. Most of all, she wanted to “create a lot of spectacular things.” And create things she did during her Graphic Design course - just on her own terms.
Diede has lived by herself from a young age. She has always had a strong opinion and went through a bit of a rebellious streak in secondary school. If someone questioned her choice of art school, she paid them no mind whatsoever. “I was 100% sure that by going to ArtEZ, I would be ending up in a very applied school, which is what I wanted. Although the first two years were quite challenging, when I look back, I only remember it positively. I love sharing my experience at ArtEZ with others.”
At ArtEZ, you are given a blank canvas that you fill in yourself.”
Distance yourself from what you know
What does she mean by challenging? “At ArtEZ, you should distance yourself from what you already know,” says Diede. “You take lessons from teachers who have no problem giving you their honest opinion. That took me a while to get used to, but now I look back on it positively. Because of that experience, I developed a work ethic that I still use today. I also particularly liked that we were given a clear curriculum, but we customized it to suit our personal learning goals. That challenges you to fully consider your choices and be deliberate about them.”
Programme advisor at the library
Currently, Diede is right at home working at the Zwolle library (Stadkamer), where she is a programme advisor. “In a nutshell, I’m responsible for all the socially-focused projects initiated by the library,” Diede says, “such as, figuring out how to encourage more locals, who may not love reading per se, to visit the library more. Then we come up with a few projects under that theme. In those projects, I function as a sort of art director.” Alongside that, she works on a freelance basis as a guest lecturer, sometimes for student projects. “Now the roles are switched: I get to become a bit like the teachers I used to have.”
In her role as programme advisor, Diede is more involved in creating ideas rather than designs. “During my course, I discovered that I am not the typical creator I always had in mind. Above all, I’m concerned with the message. Looking back, I realise now why I had such a hard time finishing my work on time at ArtEZ. It was because I was always too preoccupied with the story around it.” According to Diede, her time at ArtEZ mostly consisted of shedding old parts of herself and rebuilding herself anew. “One of the biggest strengths of the course, to me, is the process you go through during it as a student.”
Building up a network
With her diploma in hand, she didn’t choose the typical path, but decided to examine things from the opposite side of the spectrum and explore the field of social work. For a while, she was a welfare worker and was active in schools. “I used the first year after my graduation to build up my network in the social work sector so that later on, I could combine that with my background in graphic design.” Diede explains. “Plus, I was eager to get a job.” After a few years bouncing around in the social work sector, however, her creative side began calling her back. “And now,” she says, “I do something that seamlessly unites both worlds!”
Try not to be so preoccupied with your insecurities and wonder often what others think of you. I was far too hung up on that at times during my studies."
Gaining a treasure trove of experience from school
Regarding many students feeling pressure nowadays about not having enough time, Diede feels it is important – also in her work as a guest lecturer – to encourage them to slow down be intentional. “I would also say: try not to be so preoccupied with your insecurities and wonder often what others think of you. I was far too hung up on that at times during my studies. I’m usually pretty down to earth, and I often found myself questioning if I was really ‘artistic enough’, or if I could actually do this as a career.” Diede finds it virtually impossible to know what you want to do for the rest of your life at such a young age. To her, what matters most is finding (and doing) something interesting to you and swimming around in that for a bit, as well as being self-employed. “At ArtEZ, you are given a blank canvas to fill in yourself. Compared to a regular course, which is usually more straightforward, an art course asks more of you. You give a lot to it, but you also receive a treasure trove of life experience in return. At ArtEZ, the most important things I developed are an open mind, my mindset and valuable skills.”
Learn more about Graphic Design in Zwolle
