Photography: Noah Valentyn
Styling & MUAH: Sjoerd Willemsen
Interview: Paul Hofman
Mieke Martelhoff (71) was the face of the world‑famous lesbian women's café Vivelavie for 37 years. A legendary café where there was always a party. For her dedication she received a royal honour in 1999. And now, as the crowning achievement of her work, she is an ambassador for Pride Amsterdam. She glows with pride. “I stopped last year. It was time for our baby to stand on its own two feet.”
After selling her café she went through a less pleasant period. “It wasn’t a nice time but I’ve overcome it now.” When she was asked to become an ambassador for Pride 2018 she burst into tears. “It means something very special to me.” More than twenty years ago she was involved in the first Gay Pride. She remembers it like it was yesterday. “It was so different from now but also so beautiful.”
She’s a fountain of words, rattling off anecdotes at speed. “One of the highlights was when my friends and I sailed on my boat during the first Canal Parade. We had all dressed up as sailors. It was kitsch to the max. The boat parade, however, was a tremendous success.” She smiles as she shows the photos. “I could never have dreamed that Vivelavie would be a home for so many lesbians and that it would increase visibility and acceptance.”
When we point out that she herself is a figurehead she replies modestly: “I’m not a hero. What I did felt normal to me. I never set out to break taboos; it just happened.” She doesn’t name heroes directly but she admires those who once stood on the barricades for the free LGBTI life we enjoy in the Netherlands today.
The rising intolerance toward the LGBTI community worries her. “That you can no longer walk hand in hand through the city as a gay or lesbian couple is awful. Freedom is definitely under pressure.” She and her wife experienced discrimination firsthand. “That is, to put it mildly, horrible.”
Her advice needs little explanation: “Be yourself, don’t be afraid, and live the way you want to.”
“ENJOY YOUR LIFE. YOU’D BETTER HAVE HAD A GOOD TIME BECAUSE YOU’RE GOING TO DIE ANYWAY”
Pride ambassador since 2018
