Nature, observation, and material transformation guide the artistic practice of Sandra Keja Planken. Growing up between the Netherlands and Spain introduced two contrasting environments: quiet northern horizons shaped by water and light, and Mediterranean landscapes defined by color and openness. Early proximity to the surreal atmosphere surrounding the legacy of Salvador Dalí further reinforced the idea that imagination and reality can coexist within everyday life. Through years of travel and close observation of marine ecosystems, fascination with coral reefs and organic growth gradually evolved into a sculptural language. Textile, glass, and recycled threads become living structures that echo the intelligence of natural systems. In this conversation, Sandra Keja Planken reflects on the art of looking, the dialogue between craft and ecology, and the possibility of art moving beyond representation toward participation in the restoration of natural environments.

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How has your upbringing or cultural heritage shaped the themes and techniques you explore in your art today?

I grew up between the Netherlands and Spain, surrounded by very different landscapes. The Netherlands gave me water, horizon, and quiet textures of nature. Spain gave me sun, color, and a more surreal sense of life unfolding outdoors.  My family lives in the village where Salvador Dalí lived and worked. Growing up in that environment left a deep impression on me. It taught me that imagination and reality can easily coexist. And the dutch culture is very different from the Spanish one. So from a young age I developed what I now call the art of looking. Looking slowly at the world an all its different influences and materials. Observing structures in nature and humans. And wondering why things are (made) the way they are.

Through many travels my fascination with the ocean and coral reefs deepened. Coral structures feel like living architecture to me. Entire ecosystems slowly growing into extraordinary forms. Today I translate those observations into sculptures, tapestry and mixed media. I work with textile structures and glass. Threads that twist, knot and grow like organic systems. And mix it with glass that captures light like water. Sometimes people describe my work as Textiles and Glass Gone Wild, because the materials seem to grow beyond their original purpose. Recently I have been exploring a new body of work called the Blanc series, inspired by coral bleaching. And use hem as a blanc page to reinvent myself over and over again. Sculptures in soft white/beige/sand tones reflecting both the beauty and vulnerability of the human and coral ecosystems. My work moves between dream and ecology and between surreal imagination and the intelligence of nature.

Can you pinpoint a single moment when you realized art was your purpose?

There was not one dramatic moment. As a child I spent more time dreaming and observing than making finished objects. I looked closely at humans and nature, materials, shapes and textures. Wondering why things existed in certain forms. Slowly I developed my own pieces of art trough autodidactic way of studying materials and structures without fixed rules.Over time this way of seeing naturally evolved into making the way I do now..I began interpreting materials differently than what they were originally designed for. Textile could become architecture. Decorative techniques could grow into sculptural ecosystems. When I started developing my textile and glass sculptures inspired by coral structures, everything suddenly aligned. The materials, the forms, the ideas. The work began to speak. People started describing the pieces as organisms or anthropomorphic beings. And slowly developed into blooms, reefs and underwater creatures. That was when I understood that the work was not simply aesthetic. It was a language. A way to translate the intelligence of nature into sculptural form.

How does your art engage with environmental issues?

My work begins with fascination. Before people protect nature, they first have to fall in love with it. Many of my sculptural pieces resemble coral ecosystems, marine organisms, or blooming structures. Threads growing like living systems. But my long term dream goes further. I want to create art that not only speaks about nature, but eventually helps nature recover. Through collaborations with marine and NGO initiatives I am exploring sculptural glass structures that could potentially host coral growth underwater. Structures that function both as artworks and as reef habitats. If art can move from representation into participation, something powerful happens. The work stops speaking about nature. And it begins working with it.

Can you take us through the evolution of an artwork from inspiration to finished piece?

Most works begin with observation. The art of looking. A coral formation. A rhythm in nature. A structure that slowly grows in my imagination. In the studio or at the dutch Textile Museum lab where I work frequently I begin with textile braids, ropes and threads. Knotting, wrapping and building forms by hand from remnant and recycled threads. The sculptures always grow like organisms rather than designed objects. Glass enters the process as a second material that holds light. For me when these two materials merge, the sculpture begins to feel alive. The final collaborator is always light. Sunlight activates the glass and moves through the threads. Shadows shift throughout the day. At that moment the work becomes more than sculpture for it becomes an atmosphere.

What unusual or unexpected sources of inspiration have influenced your work?

Microscopic nature and marine life, different types of human beings, remnant materials but also the art from the old masters and many more young talented artist. For me nature is the most radical designer. When I mixed this with my imagination and the influence of traditional passementerie, decorative textile techniques once used for braids and tassels I began seeing these techniques differently. A braid could become architecture. A tassel could become an ecosystem. And materials reveal possibilities when you look at them long enough.

How do you challenge yourself to continue growing as an artist?

Growth begins with looking and experimenting. Looking beyond the obvious function of materials. Observing structures in nature, culture, animals and humans and asking what else they could become. I constantly push materials into unfamiliar territory where my textile’s begins to behave like living and the glass becomes integrated within the organism. The uniqueness of my work lies in the fusion of these worlds. Textile and glass merging into one sculptural universe. Not separate elements with the same language, but materials growing together. I also move myself and my works between many environments. Museums, galleries, design fairs, salon exhibitions, installations, unique events, and online platforms. Each context changes how the work breathes and how people encounter it. At the same time collaborations with scientists and ecological initiatives are opening another horizon where sculptural structures might one day live underwater as part of reef ecosystems. Growth for me always returns to the same practice. To keep looking.

How is social media shaping the way art is experienced today?

Social media has opened the doors of the art world during Covid..Since then artists can share work globally and connect directly with audiences and collectors in different ways. But sculpture lives in spaces. Texture, scale and light cannot fully exist on a screen. My works changes constantly depending on sunlight and movement around them. So I see social media as the first encounter and an invitation. The real experience begins when someone stands in front of the work and the light activates it.

Artificial intelligence is entering creative fields. Is it a threat or a tool?

For me artificial intelligence is a tool. Art begins with human perception. With observation, intuition and touch. My work is deeply physical. Knotting fibers, shaping structures, watching how light moves through glass and yarns. These processes belong to the body and the hand. Technology can support imagination. But the poetic impulse behind art will always come from human curiosity.

What legacy do you hope to leave in the art world?

I hope my work reminds people that nature is not separate from us. Coral reefs, ecosystems, living structures. Nature is intelligence, collaboration and beauty. Through my installations and sculptures I try to create small worlds where people rediscover that connection. Spaces where art, imagination and ecology meet. If one day my artworks can also contribute to restoring natural ecosystems, even in a small way, that would be the most meaningful legacy I could imagine.

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Across each reflection, Sandra Keja Planken returns to the act of attentive observation as the foundation of artistic growth. Textile and glass merge into sculptural forms that resemble organisms, reefs, and blooming ecosystems, revealing the quiet dialogue between craft, imagination, and environmental awareness. Through experimentation with materials and collaborations beyond the traditional boundaries of art, the work continues to explore how sculpture can inhabit both cultural and ecological spaces. Within this evolving practice, art becomes a place where nature, light, and human curiosity meet, opening possibilities for connection, reflection, and future restoration.