Floor van Liemt together with eleven young adults made a art photography book on living with cancer, available August 25. The book functions as a comfort in bad news conversations, as a legacy, but above all as art. Floor knows all too well that a creative process can be healing.
Floor van Liemt is Bazaars Woman of the Week
You set up your F|Fort Foundation two years ago. Now there is an art photography book called The Common Parts. How did you come up with the idea?
‘I was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2017 and have been under treatment for almost four years. If you have cancer as a young adult, the consultation room is mainly about your treatment. While such a disease also includes mental, age-specific problems. Between the ages of 18 and 35 you may no longer be dependent on your parents, but you are still searching. To a partner, a job, a house, children. Being diagnosed with cancer puts everything in a different perspective, and that does something to you mentally. I want to draw attention to this through art, in this case a photography book.’
Why exactly this way?
‘I searched for the right form for a long time, but in the end it had to be a photography book. The book has several themes, all of which deal with the mental problems that young adults with cancer face. From guilt to worry about later to who they essentially are, without their illness. I also thought it was important to incorporate this: you are more than a patient. I can speak well myself, but not everyone knows how to find the words for their feelings. By interviewing the participants, I understood what they were struggling with. Those interviews formed the basis for the photography. Pictures sometimes say more than words.’
What role did you play in making the book?
‘I was the creator and creatively responsible for the book. I conducted interviews with all participants. Then I translated their stories together with photographer Loet Koreman into appropriate art photos. Then I discussed our concept with the participants again, so that it was really their project. Each photo is captioned, which I made with Alexa Gratama.’
What did making the book mean to you personally?
‘I have always been creative, by writing and painting. When you make something, you are in the here and now and you forget all your worries for a while. But I also met eleven special people through the book. We all face the same problems, but we all deal with them differently. You understand each other, that’s comforting. Moreover, I have also gained many refreshing insights. That you can also just date when you no longer have hair, for example. You shouldn’t close yourself off from all those beautiful things in life because you’re sick.’
Who is ‘The Common Denominator’ for?
‘Some participants in the book are already better, for them it is something tangible with which they can end a difficult period. But it can also serve as a legacy. We also offer the book to people in care, so that there is more awareness. I hope that one day the book will be given to every young adult diagnosed with cancer. As a consolation, to show that you are not alone.’
‘The Common Deler’ can be ordered from August 25 via the website of F|Fort Foundation. The proceeds will fully benefit the objective of the F|Fort Foundation, which is to improve the mental well-being of young adults with cancer.
This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io
– .
