2011

"As Mr Christopoulos was explaining the Benefits of Contact Lenses..."   Oil on canvas h70 x w90cm,   January 2011

I have expressed a feeling of loss before and I when I did I left it to the viewer's fantasy to determine what that loss exactly was (e.g. "Something in the Depth"). And why not? However, in this case I have decided to give it a playful twist by giving it a concrete title, so that it is viewed in a certain way. Accidents will happen and contact lenses are easily lost. But why is a boy crouching in the same position in the background? Is he helping his father (father?) to retrieve the lens, or is history repeating itself here, captured within one single frame? We undoubtedly make the same mistakes made by others before us and the same accidents happen to us. We can only hope that we can get our act together again afterwards.

"Chicken Run"   Oil on canvas h70 x w90cm,   February 2011

The title is actually a pun on a chicken run (accommodation for these animals) and on the fact that they are sometimes running. Usually the latter is the case when there is food to be had. They move in a flash to peck the best bits before any of the others do. This painting shows yet another side of the chicken, the stressed-out chicken. There is danger ahead, there is something looming in the air. There is no underground shelter or a Vietnamese jungle to hide away in. So we just go and run around a bit.

"Maartje Houben"   Oil on canvas h50 x w60cm,   April 2011

Normally speaking, I am not in the habit of making paintings to order, simply because those commissioning them have different thoughts than mine by definition. They cannot have my thoughts and dream up what I could dream up. Besides, the paint itself also does things that are beyond my control. Nevertheless, I did take up this challenge of making a life-like portrait of the daughter of a colleague. Hence the fact that the title is just her name and refers to nothing else at all. I made a few photographs and painted after them. It was a first for me to make a portrait that should resemble an actual person, and the end result is not half bad, if I may say so myself. This small painting will probably be the last one in a regular output. At this moment we have bought an old farm which requires extensive restoration and renovation work before we can go and live there. I will not be getting round to making paintings any time soon, I'm afraid.