Michel van Collenburg: Visual Artist, Photographer and Composer

Michel van Collenburg is a multi-disciplinary artist, photographer, and composer whose practice bridges the visual and auditory realms. Operating as a self-described jack of all trades, Michel van Collenburg explores the complexities of identity, gender politics, and the rhythms of daily life. Their creative approach is deeply rooted in the concept of fragmentation—the belief that there is no singular self, but rather a collection of fragments shaped by upbringing, experience, and imagination. This philosophy manifests in kaleidoscopic works that often challenge and alienate the audience, inviting them to confront a fragmented reality. In the visual field, Michel van Collenburg heavily utilizes collaging techniques. Their series Content Aware Life uses stock photos and digital manipulation to create distorted, unrecognizable snapshots of everyday existence, addressing issues of body dysmorphia and alienation. In Identity 2024, physical collages combine male and female-presenting images to create new, non-binary identities, often accompanied by hand-written poems reflecting the struggles of a gender-non-conforming life. Musically, Michel van Collenburg performs under the moniker nobuka, creating lo-fi electro-acoustic soundscapes using tape recorders, modular samplers, and field recordings. Born in 1972 in Schiedam, the Netherlands, Michel van Collenburg currently lives and works between Nijmegen and Berlin.