The room quickly filled up with people who largely knew each other. Those who did not know each other introduced themselves to each other and then looked for a place to sit. Everyone had, at Huib's request, brought something from his artworks. Most things were still in bags, Bianca's in a box. The guests waited for Huib to open the meeting.

Margreet came in with a tray with mugs of coffee. She put sugar and coffee cream on the table in advance, and distributed coffee to those who felt like it. She then asked the guests who had not yet had anything to drink if they also wanted coffee, or rather tea. In passing, she noticed how relaxed she could handle it.

On her way to the kitchen, she met Huib and Ineke, Ineke with her cake, and Huib with saucers and matching cutlery.

"Hey Ineke, you here too?" asked Margreet in surprise.

"Yes, for a moment, I baked a cake for the first time this morning, and we are going to show it now and cut it and divide it and so on. After that, I'll go again, spoil my housemates with a piece of cake."

Margreet nodded: "It turned out beautifully, we're going to enjoy that!"

Huib, meanwhile, called attention to the cake: "Besides our project for artists, we also have a project for a discovery centre here. Ineke is working on that, also by discovering new things herself. This morning she baked this cake."

A loud cheer filled the room as Ineke showed off the cake. Then she put it on the dining table and started cutting it into pieces. Everyone responded eagerly, wanting a piece of that beautiful cake! And when Ineke went home again, she was chased by compliments and thanks.

.

Huib opened the meeting with a brief bit of history. He told how Elly, Margreet and he himself had joined their creative forces in a website and on social media.

"In recent days, a few artists joined, and it became too much for myself to coordinate everything. Margreet suggested asking Ilse for help and she was immediately totally enthusiastic, as this is exactly what she really likes to do.

The idea as it stands now is as follows... Her first task will be to make the website optimal. Her second task will involve keeping in touch with customers and interested parties on behalf of the artist, and handling the administration. I think that for everything she will do, it may apply that it is important that the artists indicate what they absolutely want or don't want. If an artist wants certain things to be different, it should be mutually agreed and recorded so that everyone knows where they stand. As said, this is the idea! We will discuss that later.

But first, also a bit to get to know each other's specific creative side better, I want to start with my request that I had sent you, to bring something from your art. I'll start with myself: I work with wood, making furniture and sometimes smaller things, and my creative side in that is that I try not to make it standard, but slightly different. Small decorations, or like this coffee table, which is definitely not a standard shape. Margreet, do you want to show what you have to offer?"

"Yes, you've probably already seen that. I make wall hangings, like the one hanging on the wall over there. By the way, Huib made that little table and the bowl under it. I make my tapestries on a basic cloth, so far solid linen. I use all kinds of cloth, thicker and thinner threads and whatever comes to mind. I start from an image I have, or an impression. I suspect that's recognisable to all of you, getting an impression and working that out. Elly, you may continue!"

Elly smiled at her, "My first work after rediscovering what I love most is a mural in the children's room above. I thought murals were really my thing, but found out after a few that I much prefer to stay at home, and make little paintings at my leisure, like this one..." Elly picked up a small painting with a butterfly that was perfectly recognisable by its shape, but totally unrecognisable by how its wings were coloured in. "I combine reality from nature with fantasy. I saw a butterfly in front of me, recognisable by its shape, but otherwise totally unknown. And I started working with that image. I use this size, and sometimes a more elongated canvas. But it's not that I would absolutely refuse other sizes. If I get other impressions, I'll see... Who follows? Bianca?"

"That's right, so I'm Bianca, and I rediscovered through a question from someone that I love making doll clothes. Not the ordinary ones you can buy in the toy shop, but whatever impression comes to me. The first one I have with me. I bought a few dolls to use for sizing and fitting. This is my first one, a Spanish dance dress with a more Dutch look because of the different colours." Shyly, she took out her doll from the box and let it stand on her knees for everyone to see.

"Ooohh," Elly exclaimed, "ooohh, how beautiful, how... sorry, I can't help it, but I..." Elly clasped her hands in front of her face and started sobbing. "Sorry, I don't know what's happening," she said between sobs.

Bianca looked bewildered at Huib, who nodded reassuringly at her. Danielle, who was sitting next to her, put her hand on Bianca's hand and whispered next to her ear, "So this is what can happen when people see art created by the power of your soul. Think of it as a compliment, as an encouragement."

Bianca looked at her, nodded understandingly and smiled.

Elly, meanwhile, regained her composure and said, "While crying, I got a memory about my childhood, about how as a child I danced with the boy who has been my husband for years now. I saw your doll dress and felt the freedom I had as a child, and how I had enjoyed dancing with Martin. I'll tell him about it tonight, reminiscing together!" Elly laughed, wiping her tears and blowing her nose.

Huib interjected: "Danielle, I saw you whisper something to Bianca. Is it something that the others could also benefit from?"

"Yes, I think so," Danielle said, repeating what she had said.

Elly nodded: "It is, it can't be otherwise. It was so strong! Nice hey, Bianca, that that just happens, right through what you've enjoyed making so much! Folks, we're lucky, we're doing what suits us and it's even powerful too!"

Bianca shot into laughter: "Absolutely right! Will you continue Danielle?"

"Okay! I love gemstones. To gemstones as they are, but especially to make something beautiful with them. I made jewellery for years..."

"Like my ring!" Margreet interrupted her as she held out her hand to the others.

"Yes, that was a special one, let me tell you," Danielle complemented. "I got an impression about that ring, about what it should look like, and what size. Not with gold, but with silver. Small jade stone, slightly recessed into the silver. And I knew that within a short time someone would come to pick it up. The next day Huib came, chose this ring for Margreet. Was a perfect fit, both in terms of her taste and size. I have a shop selling that jewellery and loose gemstones, but lately my desire grew to make something else, something we call sculptures, but with my materials. I started trying, with silver, gold, bronze and, of course, gemstones. And I enjoy it so much! But it takes a lot of time, and therefore I can make less jewellery. I still do it, and I think I will always do it, but my heart is primarily with these sculptures. I told Huib, that I actually wanted to close the shop, but couldn't because I wouldn't get any more money in. He added me to the website, promising to see if he could find someone who would also take care of the correspondence and such, so that I could devote myself entirely to creating what I see in front of me, and for which I experience such an enormous passion. And he found Ilse... For now, only my sculptures appear on the website and I sell the jewellery through the shop that I now have open five days instead of six. That's already an improvement, but I look forward to the time when I can close the shop completely! And I also brought along my first sculpture. I fixed it on a shelf and had hung it on the wall in the shop, making it look like a plant growing out of the wall. It looks a bit like Elly's idea: something from nature, something we are familiar with, here stems from a plant with leaves and flowers, but they look so completely different that you hardly recognise a plant in them. Who will follow? Maureen, that's your name, isn't it?"

Maureen nodded, shyly. "I had a crazy hobby as a child, at least, it seemed crazy, but the more often I engaged in it, the more beautiful my little works became. I make figurines by dripping candle wax and working a bit with a knife or a spoon. Huib made a place for me in his work shed, and that's where I made my first sculpture. It's only just finished." Carefully, she took the wedding dress of candle wax out of the bag, taking care not to touch the candle wax, but lifting the sculpture by the little board on which she had dripped it on a long upright screw on Huib's advice.

Margreet got up from her chair, took a step forward and looked intently at the wedding dress. "How beautiful it is..." she sighed. "Huib, if we ever get married one day, I want a wedding dress like that, so simple, but so special! How did you get those pleats and those waves in it so beautifully?"

"Those pleats with a potato peeler, such a sharp little knife, and another thing I found in the cutlery bin at the thrift shop, no idea what it is, but it has a sharp point on it. It looks like a prodding pen that little children sometimes use. And those waves with the back of different teaspoons, spoons with smooth handles, so there are no little coats of arms or anything. And they are of different widths. I then scrape some grooves in the still semi-soft candle wax and I keep the scraps in a metal container. I will use those scraps again to try something different. Then I will melt the candle wax a bit au bain-marie, and then I can use it with those teaspoons to build a sculpture with. A different technique, which I haven't tried before, but I feel it should be possible."

Margreet sat back down while Huib spoke up.

"Thank you all, this..." he swallowed a few times, "it moves me so much, because this very thing, this small collection of artworks together form a promise, the elaboration of a kind of visionary image that Simon was given. Simon is the partner of my mother, Annerieke. They also live here on the estate. Simon envisioned it, not even exactly, I mean, not what it was going to look like. He saw that there is going to be a gallery, and he knew it would be a beautiful building, where we as artists would be able to show our artworks to visitors. He knew with certainty that more artists were going to be added. And it seems he has thereby opened a gateway for others, for Danielle and Maureen, and for those to come! He called our website our digital gallery, which can eventually coexist with the real gallery. At least, as I see it now. But he also indicated that it could take some time, maybe years, because we are all still in a process of emotional healing. Through that healing, the power of our souls is increasingly releasing, including through our creative expressions. We just saw that with Elly, and I also saw it with Margreet, and I think we all felt it to some extent. That's only going to get stronger in the coming years, as our souls continue to heal. Think of it as a mirror. If it is dirty, it reflects the image badly. The more you clean the mirror, the better the reflection becomes. The more shit disappears from our woundedness, the more our soul can radiate its power to the world, especially also through those things we do from our soul. Also through who we are, by the way, but that aside.

OK, so the website for now. At the moment, we have a website, on which I have made a separate page for each artist."

Huib took the computer from its sleeping mode and showed what he meant.

"Ilse will continue with that, start adding photos of new artists and discuss with them whether they want to sell and if so, at what price. I have written down a few points, which I want to go over with you briefly, to find out how you want to proceed with this.

First... Ilse, would you like to introduce yourself?"

"Yep, I'm Ilse Verbree, have loved trying out all kinds of things with computers since I was a teenager, however, got completely stuck in forced prostitution, luckily got out of it, got temporary housing in The Shelter here on the estate and got through a few court cases with the help of Sjaak and Lisa and a fantastic judge and lawyer, with great success! The perpetrators who made my life miserable came to realise during the court cases what they had done to me, and accepted their punishment without grumbling. So when you talk about the power of the soul... that was noticeable, by that judge and the lawyer, by Sjaak and Lisa. It was very special! Anyway, so for now I am still living here, and for the past few days I was moping and grumbling about how I wanted to move on. I knew I would prefer to do something with computers, with a website, or several websites, but where and how? And then Huib came along... and I would love it if I could help you with this!"

She saw that the everyone nodded eagerly, and continued, towards Huib: "So that's going to work out!"

"Super! And will you all also agree if Ilse will handle the correspondence on your behalf with customers and interested parties?"

Huib looked around the circle, saw only nodding heads.

"And the financial administration?"

"Oh yes, very much so!" responded Elly.

Everyone shot into laughter and all sorts of comments were shouted through each other, comments that made it abundantly clear how much they liked leaving that to Ilse!

"I'm glad about that, then that's clear and we'll move on to the second point. It seems only fair that Ilse should get a salary for all that work. Ilse, have you thought about that, and do you have any ideas about it?"

Ilse nodded, "Yes, I have. Not the most common thing, because I know standard amounts are asked for such work. But that just doesn't feel right to me! So I kept thinking about that, and all sorts of things really went through me. And this morning I woke up, and I knew: a certain percentage of the products you are going to sell. I realise very well that this could mean that I will be in the black if you don't sell anything. But I can't imagine that. I believe in you and how you work, I trust your vision, your way of living from the inside out. It's just right! What else should I make of it? This is just what it is, and I would prefer to go for that percentage. Sell a lot, I earn more, sell little, that's just not an option! And how high the percentage should be, we will have to work that out together. I do have something in mind, but I'd rather hear what you think first."

Huib looked around the circle: "First, about the idea of a percentage of products sold. Can we do something with that?"

Everyone nodded, Bianca raised her thumb.

"OK, then I would like you all to discuss with yourselves, so in silence, how high you think that percentage should be. I will hand out pieces of paper. When you are sure for yourselves that you have found the percentage that suits you, write down that number and fold your piece of paper in half."

"Pfff exciting," Maureen said with a deep sigh.

Bianca nodded: "I agree!"

They became silent, some closed their eyes to avoid being distracted.

However difficult it was, they all eventually found the percentage they felt was right. They put all the folded-up notes on the tray.

"Whatever you wrote down," Huib said, "your number is good, because it is your number, even if it is different from others. So your number will never be too low or too high, it is just right. However, with all the different numbers in front of us, we will have to come to an agreement, and in doing so, we must not go against ourselves. We will have to come to a solution where we all feel comfortable. Shall I open them so we can compare?"

Everyone nodded again, and Huib began, reading out the numbers he saw, "Ten per cent... ten... ten per cent... ten per cent... ten per cent... ten..." With a sob in his voice, he continued, "This is unbelievable, all of us are going for ten per cent. It looks like our souls have aligned. Despite everything I have already experienced around the phenomenon of living from your soul, I did not expect this! Well, the key question, for you Ilse, what percentage did you have in mind yourself?"

He saw that Ilse also had a folded-up note. She stood up, shifted all the other notes until they were in a circle and put her note in the middle. She nodded to Huib, indicating that he could open it. A cheer went up when he did and everyone saw that Ilse had written down her number in big, fat numbers... 10 !

They all stood up and hugged each other, expressing their joy with all sorts of enthusiastic cries!

"Money is so often a stumbling block. How wonderful that money is not a problem at all with us! Then I have a question for you, Ilse, point three. Do you think you can continue with the free version of the website?"

"Yes, with ease! If you agree to continue in this way, I see an opportunity to give dozens of artists their own page on this in a very simple way. Instead of the way you have done it now, I would like those four pages to fall under one heading, something like 'Our artworks' or whatever name you want to choose. And below that, the pages of all the artists who join. In the first menu, you will then only see 'Home', the page where you have already described the vision of how you work. By the way, I think it would be best to change that name to 'Vision' as well. I think we all agree with the description of the vision, but feel free to share your ideas later. There will also be the heading 'Contact', for which I would suggest using only one e-mail address, as it will go through me. If I am allowed to have all your e-mail addresses, I can submit everything that is necessary to you, but that goes outside the site. The advantage of that is, you only have to be busy with what you really like to do, and at most with the emails you get from me about things you have to make decisions about, things I can't do for you. Just to name a few, if someone wants to place an order or something. But I assume that all sales can go through the central e-mail address, which will save you a lot of hassle. My job will also include keeping your financial records.

Just a little example. A customer buys your sculpture, Danielle. I make an invoice for that customer, arrange payment, transfer 90% of that payment to you, and 10% to my own account. I'll keep a record of that for myself and for the gallery, showing which artwork by which artist sold for which price on which date and to whom, and how the amount was split between the artist and myself. I still have some figuring out exactly how I'm going to go about it, but a monthly overview per artist and eventually an annual overview, per calendar year, will have to roll out. Will do, that's just one of the things I love to puzzle out! I will send you these monthly and yearly overviews every time. Then it will also be clear to you what happened to your work. And in addition, I will keep quotations and invoices per artist in a folder on the computer. I can send them to you per month, if I also send that other overview. Is that clear to you? Or do you have any questions?"

Ilse looked at them one by one, and everyone indicated with a happy face that it was clear. Ilse nodded to Huib, indicating that she was giving him the turn again.

"Let's see, point three, the free website we have thus had. Point four is about the delivery. People who are already connected to the website surely know: if you are making something new, take a few photos of it during the process, or at least of the final product. You can see here on the site how I solved it myself, namely by making collages, a collage of the process and a collage of the final product, viewed from different angles. If you don't know how to make a collage of your best photos, come and see me, or Ilse, and we'll teach you in no time. I think it would be best if everyone chooses their best photos themselves and makes a collage of them, and sends them as images to Ilse by e-mail. Again, we are happy to help you learn how to make a collage. If you've done it a few times, you'll do it again and again with ease! In addition, we use Facebook and Twitter. Everyone is free to follow that example, or not, but I recommend it, because you can easily share your collages there, with a reference to the website. If you have any questions about that or need help, feel free to come along!"

Ilse raised her hand: "In addition to your personal accounts on Facebook and Twitter, do you mind if I create a Gallery account there, which also links to the website?"

"Top! The more advertising the better!" thought Danielle. The others nodded in agreement again.

"Good, for now that's clear, feel free to come to Ilse later with questions, or to me. Unless they are questions for the whole group, come with them, in between or at the end of the evening. If there are no questions now..., I'll move on to point five. Right now, the names of the pages on the website are a combination of our name and the kind of art we make, like here HuibsWoodworking. We chose that, but I think we may come up with something better."

He looked around the circle and saw that Bianca wanted to say something.

"I was thinking, for myself something like 'Doll dresses, Bianca Overeem'. So, the type of product, a comma and then the full name."

Ilse nodded and responded, " Solid plan, that way people can easily find everyone again. If they click on that heading 'Our artworks' or whatever we are going to call it, they will just get a kind of table of contents, a list of all art forms with the corresponding artist's name. By the way, you can feel free to call your products art too, Bianca, because it is art, and that goes for all of you! Your work definitely falls under art. I understand art to mean something different from what I think people usually understand it to mean, and the Vision page shows that a bit, namely the expressions you get from your soul, that sort of thing. And you can go either way with that, even if they were construction drawings, if they come from your soul, to me it's art!"

"Construction drawings!" exclaimed Margreet, "they will come, just takes a few more years. The draughtsman will be born at the turn of the year, but the impressions about him are clear. Drawing buildings, sort of like construction drawings, sketchy or something, will totally be his passion!"

Huib nodded: "That's right, really Ilse, that seemed like a daft example, but it's so definitely not! And another thing... Art, the expression of our souls. Something like that should be apparent from the name of the gallery... Hold it, we'll brainstorm on that later. Can you still keep track of everything, Ilse?"

"Yeah sure, I just take notes, and if I have any questions, I know where to find you!"

"If only you know that!" laughed Huib. "Moving on to point six. At the moment, the artists' email addresses are on the website. So those may be taken off. Danielle still has her shop, and as long as it is still running, I think it would be good to leave its link on her page, so that people can find her work and gemstones there too. Ilse already mentioned that there will be a separate contact page. So the website's email address will be on there. Do you also want to put a phone number on there, Ilse?"

"Not yet, maybe later, if that proves to be useful. But given the size, and the fact that the group is expected to grow, it seems too much if people all just start calling me. But if my impression on those changes, you'll hear from me! And if you guys want otherwise, just let me know."

Huib continued, "If you create an email address for the gallery, will you try to incorporate the name we are still going to come up with?"

"Definitely," Ilse said, "by the way, I thought that name you mentioned was perfect: 'Art, the expression of our soul'. It so beautifully describes what art is, and all the different works of art made from the soul fit under that name. How do you experience that name?" she asked the others.

"I immediately clicked with it." 

"Me too, I wouldn't know a better one!"

So they quickly agreed on that, and Ilse promised to create an email address that fit it well.

"On to the seventh point! We are progressing nicely, I have nine points written down," Huib smiled. "Point seven is about the email addresses and phone numbers of all of you. I'd like you to write those down, could be on those notes you just wrote the percentage for Ilse on."

After everyone had written down their details, Ilse collected all the notes. "Thanks! I will keep them in a file."

"About point eight, I can be brief. The first form in which we can keep in touch is to follow each other on Facebook and Twitter, at least if you have or take an account there. Again, if you need help with that, just ask us! Initially, Ilse is the central engine in all that stuff, but I'm happy to pitch in when it comes to learning new things, those collages and new accounts. Then Ilse can totally focus on all that other stuff. Is that OK with you, Ilse?"

"Gladly, I think I'll have plenty of work the first few days, but it might not be too bad!"

"Then the last topic: how else are we going to keep in touch? In many things everyone goes their own way, is enjoying creating. But what do you guys think is convenient? Passing on all email addresses? A group email for things that concern us all? Or rather a Group App?"

"Oh, please no Group App," said Margreet, "then I so quickly feel obliged to respond, and that bitch then goes on and on all day."

"I don't like it either, when we're all busy with our own work..." thought Danielle. "I wouldn't want to make time for it. A group email, and colleagues' email addresses visible, that seems much nicer to me."

"I agree," Bianca joined Danielle's comment.

"Me too," Maureen responded, "I prefer to be nice and busy, and only answer emails if necessary!"

Elly also nodded and Huib joined in. "That's clear then, sharing email addresses, and group information in a group email. Feasible for you too, Ilse?"

"Absolutely, I really don't feel like dangling from my mobile all day..."

Bianca, still a bit tense despite the nice atmosphere, chortled: "Hahahaha, I can see it for myself, Ilse dangling from her mobile! Stupid stupid stupid, what a ridiculous picture!"

One after another added silly things to the picture, so that in the end everyone was limp with laughter. It was only when things had really calmed down that Huib thanked everyone and Margreet asked who wanted another drink. Everyone indicated that it had been a nice evening, but that they would like to go home. Working on their own creativity tomorrow, and taking photos to send collages to Ilse as soon as she had provided an email address.

Together, the guests walked out, looked after by Huib and Margreet.

To chapter 35. Musical creations

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