Ilva Nieuwstraten was born on April 20, 1996, in Voorburg, near The Hague. She graduated in 2024 from the Royal Academy of Arts in The Hague, specializing in Interactive / Media / Design. She also studied Film & Moving Image at Tokyo Zokei University (2023) and took Butoh (舞踏, Butō) classes at the Dairakudakan (大駱駝艦) Artists Collective, where she discovered her passion for this contemporary Japanese dance and performance art. Additionally, she studied Biodynamic Farming and Gardening at Warmonderhof in the Netherlands (2018).

Besides these studies, Ilva participated in residencies at Great Vow Zen Monastery in Clatskanie, Oregon, USA (2017), and Zen River Temple in Uithuizen, Groningen, the Netherlands (2016), engaging in religious study for two years to deepen her meditative practice and understanding of Zen Buddhism.

As long as she can remember, Ilva had a deep appreciation for nature and a strong environmental awareness. She has a history of burnout and mental illness that could have cost her life.

“This experience was a learning point for me. By trying to become invisible I lost the connection with the earth. So instead, I looked for a way to put my back on the ground. Making art helps me to stay down to earth and connected with the collective and personal experiences. For me, art is a way to integrate meditation and meditation helps me integrate art.”

Ilva's work aims to provide her audience with insights into mental illness issues caused by the competitive capitalist society of the West. As an experienced expert, she offers insights into how to heal physically, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually from the stress and imbalances of modern-day life.

She is an artist and conceptual creator specializing in sound design, moving image, gardening, writing, and meditation.

Her thesis “Harmonious Inner and Outer Climates” (graded 9/10 by KABK 2024) can be found here.