NABILA AVIANI
(THINKS TOO MUCH)
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©Nabila Aviani, 2025.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I create paintings based on personal experiences with bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. However, I believe I am more than the labels these mental disorders might give me.
My artistic practice explores identity, mental health and the complexities of self-perception. Born in Indonesia, raised in the United Arab Emirates and now based in the Netherlands, both my experiences of being a third-culture kid and my mental health conditions, shaped my view of identity as fluid and ever-evolving. Through my lens, I use painting as a ‘visual diary’ to capture my raw emotions, whether it is from the intense manic episodes to the painful depression or the emotional turbulence from borderline personality disorder. By diving into topics such as identity (crisis), (self) love and (self) destruction, my goal is to reject and challenge the view that we should be defined by contradictions and complexities.
The resilience, feminine rage and the yearning for connection in my paintings celebrate humanity’s fragility and strength. For certain, my paintings participate in the discourse on destigmatising mental health to provide a safe space for vulnerability whilst confronting the uncomfortable.
There are hints of myself in my paintings but also hints of everyone in them.
My artistic practice explores identity, mental health and the complexities of self-perception. Born in Indonesia, raised in the United Arab Emirates and now based in the Netherlands, both my experiences of being a third-culture kid and my mental health conditions, shaped my view of identity as fluid and ever-evolving. Through my lens, I use painting as a ‘visual diary’ to capture my raw emotions, whether it is from the intense manic episodes to the painful depression or the emotional turbulence from borderline personality disorder. By diving into topics such as identity (crisis), (self) love and (self) destruction, my goal is to reject and challenge the view that we should be defined by contradictions and complexities.
The resilience, feminine rage and the yearning for connection in my paintings celebrate humanity’s fragility and strength. For certain, my paintings participate in the discourse on destigmatising mental health to provide a safe space for vulnerability whilst confronting the uncomfortable.
There are hints of myself in my paintings but also hints of everyone in them.