What Inspired Me In October?
Five things that shaped my month
I’ve had a lot of conversations lately about what inspiration actually is. It’s a fascinating thing, because it never comes from one place. It can come from work, from people, from music, from something you read, or simply from the way a day unfolds.
This month my inspiration came from corners I didn’t expect. Moments that had little to do with making art, yet everything to do with living. Sometimes the things that stay with you, the things that occupy your mind, are the ones that quietly shape your creative energy.
Breath — James Nestor
I’ve recently been exploring breathwork. Not as a creative tool, but as a personal one. Much like my journeys with psychedelics, it’s a way of looking inward. We all breathe constantly, yet rarely pay attention to it.
James Nestor’s Breath reminded me how something so ordinary can shape how we feel. Slowing down, breathing consciously, noticing the rhythm of it, can shift the way you move through a day. A simple reminder that awareness often starts with the smallest action.
Olafur Eliasson – Black & White (yellow) Light
I came across Olafur Eliasson’s installation Room for one colour, a space where colour disappears and perception resets. It resonates with the way I work in black and white — reducing the world to form, contrast, and emotion.
Eliasson shows how much can happen when you strip things back. Light becomes subject, and the absence of colour becomes a kind of presence. It’s inspiring to see how other artists explore reduction as a way of seeing.
Monofrequency lights mounted to the ceiling of a white room emit a narrow range of yellow light, reducing visitors’ color perception to shades of yellow and black. The longer the visitors stay in the space, the more they begin to perceive subtle color distinctions and to correct for the yellowish lighting. Upon leaving,they momentarily perceive a bluish afterimage.
The Youngest 92-Year-Old Artist
There is a short video of a 92-year-old painter who still creates every single day. The title calls him “the youngest old man alive,” which feels fitting when you see the joy and energy he brings to his work.
It’s a reminder that making art keeps you curious, engaged, and connected to something bigger than routine. Passion has its own ability to keep you young, as long as you continue to show up for the work.
1605 Magazine No. 3 — Duality
I love sharing inspiration through these monthly notes, but we explore this on a larger scale with 1605 Magazine, which has now reached its third edition.
This year’s theme is Duality — looking at contrast as structure, and at the beauty that appears when opposites meet. Light and dark, calm and chaos, intuition and discipline.
I’m proud of how this issue came together. If you want to explore it, the magazine is now available as a pre-order via our website.
René Wise — 6-Hour Techno Journey
I’ve been listening to René Wise’s six-hour set on SoundCloud. It feels more like a journey than a mix. The slow evolution, the tension, the details that only reveal themselves if you stay with it.
Techno can tell stories without words. This set unfolds like a landscape, patient and deep, with movement that feels almost cinematic. A beautiful reminder of how music can carry emotion through repetition and subtle change.
See you next month with more inspiration
— Bastiaan
banging tunes! Eliasson is great too, art has that power to make you see and reset.