Ties van de Water (1998) is a documentary and portrait photographer, and community developer who, through personal experience and close collaboration, creates space for immeasurable experiences that a performance-driven society tries to push out.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My practice is driven by an ongoing process of learning. This belief is rooted in the stories of my grandmother who always told me: 'the beginning of our happiness lies in the realisation that a life without wonder is not worth living.' I see the world as my classroom and the encounters in my life as my lessons. This calls for a conscious engagement with my surroundings.
I explore the human experience through themes of youth, memory, fear and grief. I work with the weight of life in order to learn from it and in doing so, make it lighter. By working closely with my subjects, I create a space in which I can share the lessons I have learned in universal way. I’v worked with photography, text, video, installations, and performance.
Alongside my artistic practice I’m a co-founder of Stichting OFWA, where we are committed to giving youth culture and nightlife a more prominent place in the city of Den Bosch.
EDUCATION
FOTODOK Lighthouse 2026-present
BredaPhoto International Talent Programme 2026
Write LOUD (semester), Stichting Watershed 2024-2025
BA Photography, Film & The Digital, St. Joost School of Arts 2020-2026
Short course Director Fiction, Amsterdam Film School 2020
GRANTS & AWARDS
St. Joostpenning, Gemeente Breda 2026
EXHIBITIONS
Open Monumentendagen, Johanneskerk, Breda NL 2026
BredaPhoto, Koepelgevangenis, Breda NL 2026 On view till October 25th
NOW SHOW, St. Joost School of Art & Design, Breda NL 2026
Tussen ons in, The Gallery Lane, Breda NL 2025
DuPho Book Expo, Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam NL 2024
FEATURED
Brabants Dagblad 2026
Explore Breda 2026
St. Joostpenning 2026
BredaPhoto 2026
Brabants Dagblad 2024
Indebuurt.nl 2023
INTERNSHIPS
Vincen Beeckman & Stedelijk Museum Breda 2025
Cityboost, Gemeente ‘s-Hertogenbosch 2025
OFWA EVENTS
2026
Bossche Borrel #13, Den Bosch Partners
Museum night (may), Noordbrabantsmuseum
Bossche Borrel #12, Maarten Baas
Bossche Borrel #11, DOKX
2025
Bossche Borrel #10, STOOM
Museum night (nov), Noordbrabantsmuseum
Bossche Borrel #9, Studio Met Zonder Naam
Bossche Borrel #8, SPARK campus
Jubileum III, Bossche Brouwers
Bossche Borrel #7, Noordbrabantsmuseum
Bossche Borrel #6, Mike Dings
Bossche Borrel #5, Social Label
Bossche Borrel #4, Artrium Art Space
Bossche Borrel #3, Grafisch Atelier
Bossche Borrel #2, Ruby Soho Gallery
Bossche Borrel #1, Het Nest
Museum night installation (june), Noordbrabantsmuseum
Happy Tramkade (New Years), Van Aken in het Werkwarenhuis
2024
Jubileum II, Bossche Brouwers
DIY Festival Afterparty, Bossche Brouwers
Verkade OFWA, Verkadefabriek
2023
Jubileum, Bossche Brouwers
Always feel free to contact me for inquiries, prints, publications or anything else.
Open for commissions
Based in Den Bosch, The Netherlands
tiesvandewater@hotmail.com
Instagram: @grisvdwater
LinkedIn: Ties van de Water