We recently connected with Heidi Huughe and have shared our conversation below.

Heidi, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

There have always been two loves in my life, one of them is art, the other is music. Sometimes they walk hand in hand, other times one is more predominant than the other. Growing up with both of them as a child, I knew right then and there that this is what I was meant to do, even though it was not so much a concious thought, but more of an intuitive knowing, an inner pull … it was just who I was. To be honest, throughout my childhood I never thought of creativity in terms of a career, it would kind of manifes by itself later on.

Having inherited the artistic genes of my father and grandfather I found that drawing came quite natural to me. Influenced by their artstyle which was rooted in realism, I also practised drawing realistic scenes, and I remember I was quite ambitious, always striving to expand my bounderies and getting better at it. I would often sit in front of a mirror practising drawing my own portrait or I would practise drawing a still life or landscape. Another part of me was also drawn to illustrations and magical worlds I found in my collection of fairytale books by the brothers Grimm and HC Anderson. They were my treasures, I remember getting completely lost in them.

At the age of 9 I was introduced to musical and performing on stage through my aunt who is a professional actress and singer. A whole new world opened up for me. To be able to sing and put all of my emotions in a song, the thrill of standing in front of a public, the teamwork to create something beautiful out of nothing and the deep connections it made … I remember vividly how deeply I fell in love with it.

When I was a teenager I experienced an existential crisis which left me with questions like: who am I, what is life all about and why are we here. That lead me on a spiritual path that would turn out to be the ground in which both my artistic and musical sides would fully blossom.

One thing led to another, and I found myself doing lots of comissioned work drawing portaits, painting stage backdrops, painting and restoring statues and doing some larger art projects abroad. It was also the time where I learned playing different musical instruments, started writing my own songs, performed in public and recorded a few cd’s.

Then due to some major changes in my personal life, a chapter was about to be closed. I felt like I needed a break and wanted to try out some different things, like learning to sew my own clothes. So I took a 4 year course to learn the skills and started working in a gift shop. Although music was still present, it existed in the background.
But art would be something that laid dormant up until 1,5 year ago when I picked it up again.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi! My name is Heidi Huughe, I’m a selftaught traditional artist and illustrator living in Antwerp together with my husband Rob. Creativity has always been the common thread throughout my life and although it wasn’t always expressed through making art, art did however play an important part up untill somewhere in my thirties.

After a break I felt the inspiration to start painting again bubbling up. It was December 2022 and Christmas was approaching, as well as my brother’s birthday. So I thought, why not paint a birthday card and some christmas cards myself. It was met with so much enthousiasm by my family and friends that I just kept going, thus embarking on a new adventure where I would find purpose, gradually develop a new art style and tap into a part of myself that had been waiting to come out.

Creating art for me is a way to express myself, my inner world and what moves me in life.
I like to tell a story through my art and invite people into a world born out of my imagination. It is a world that is magical, dreamy, playful and whimsical sometimes with a touch of surrealism. Vibrant colours play a huge part in it as well. My favourite medium therefore is acrylics because it provides these deep colours.

Encouraged by my brother, a little over a year ago I started sharing my work on instagram where I found an incredibly supportive community and had the opportunity to collaborate with some amazing artists and with a charity organisation to illustrate for their childrensbook project.

Half a year ago I took the plunge into entrepreneurship and launched my small business called Heidi in Heartland. Besides my original paintings I also offer a selection of greetingcards and artprints. It is still in it’s infancy and I’m in the process of figuring out in which direction I want to take this. At the moment I participate in lots of artmarkets, which I absolutely love. The social part, meeting people that are genuinly inspired by your work is truely uplifting. I’ve also found it to be a great way for networking, meeting potential clients, fellow artists and learning from them. And the customer’s demand gives me an idea in which direction I should proceed. Besides that I’ve also entered into a partnership with a florist who sells my greetingcards together with her beautiful flowerbouquets.

My goal for the future is definately to continue doing artmarkets, to keep growing as an artist and entrepreneur, hopefully enter a few more partnerships, develop a website, maybe a webshop, and just take things one step at a time and see where the road will take me.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I remember everytime I finished a new piece, whether it was through music or through creating a piece of art, I fell completely in love with it. But putting it out there and exposing myself was always very scary and accompanied with an intense insecurity. Especially after seeing or hearing someone else’s work, voices would creep in telling a story of inferiority, of it not being good enough and they would spread doubt with the result that I eventually started to minimise my work and let the opinion of others define it’s worth. That was an important lesson for me to unlearn.

I’ve come a long way since then, and it is still a learning process, but I realize now there is no use in trying to control a situation that you can’t, there will always be people who love your work and others who don’t. And that’s ok, it is only natural, we can’t all be the same. Instead of making art to ‘please’ others, I have learned to make art first and foremost for myself, because I have to and because it makes my heart sing, and through it I’m able to express myself in ways I cannot find anywhere else. I have learned to stay true to myself, the path I am on is my own and it can’t be compared to anyone else’s.

Going through this phase of selfdoubt was essential for my growth, it was the stepping stone towards freedom.
Now when I finish a piece of work, I am so proud and I cannot wait to share it with the world. And although there’s still a tention, it’s a healthy one. And when I see someone else’s work, the feeling of inadequacy has made room for inspiration, the desire to learn and to grow as an artist. And I’m truely grateful for that.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I can think of many things, but first and foremost I would say the act of creation itself. There is a deep joy and sense of fulfillment in giving life to something new, in giving form to your imagination. Seeing something being born out of nothing is such a beautiful thing.

And the therapeutic and healing qualities it carries are extremely valuable to me. As a high sensitive person with a nervoussystem that tends to be overstimulated resulting in mental chaos, just sitting down and painting is such an amazing tool to calm down the nerveus system. It is a mindful, meditative state I’m entering where everything disappears and all that is left is stillness. To me that is something so rewarding.

And ofcourse, to be able to share your creations with others and see how it inspires them and how it brings out certain emotions in them is something that is truely inspiring and motivating.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: heidi_in_heartland
• Other: [email protected]