Come and visit!

Just a short entry this week. This Sunday, 31^st of May my colleagues and I at Studio Grafisch Collectief Thoets open up our doors to the public.

We do this every year so friends, family and anyone who might be interested can have a look at what we’ve been doing all year.

As a collective we also have a loyal group of donors that get a print made especially for them and just them. This year the print was made by Jan Baas and Steven Toes. On the pic below you can see them both working on the print.

Jan and Steven were inspired by the exhibition ‘the Oasis of Matisse’ that is now showing at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, because to us our studio is also like an oasis.

So everyone who is in the neighbourhood please feel welcome to stop by this Sunday!!

Unlocking doors

A few months ago I felt like drawing my mom, she died two years ago and I wanted to do a little portrait of her. When it was finished I put it on Facebook and got some really nice comments. My friend Sanneke Griepink, who is an artist too, replied: ‘Hey you can do portraits too!’ And somehow that little remark made me think. Yes, I can do portraits too, in fact it was my favourite thing to do as a teenager, draw my family, actors, popstars… When did I quit again? Oh right, right after I finished art academy.

Somehow doing portraits became a bad thing.

In the years after that I did one portrait I really liked doing and then right after one I really hated and never finished. I ended up passing on the commission to a befriended artist and never doing a portrait again.

As it turns out I don’t hate doing portraits, I just need to stay close to a way of working that fits me. Right now I’m working on a portrait of my brother and very much enjoying the process. It’s not quite ready yet but still having fun and already looking forward to the next portraitproject.

Another door I’m pondering to unlock is teaching, giving small courses from my home…

Dear Diary (4)

Starting this blog I intended to share all my highs & lows that I would encounter in my art adventures but as it turned out I didn’t. For the last 7 months it has been nothing but tumbleweed here.

For me art or the act of making is very personal. When I don’t function properly, the making doesn’t work properly. For some mysterious reason I didn’t have the energy to do anything. As it turned out I was having a burn-out. The making had slowed down and for a short period it even stopped. After the diagnose I continued working at my paid job but 2 months later I also needed to press pause on that front and I ended up losing that job. 
 

I’m doing better now but a lot has changed. No job (yet) and I had to give up my shared studio at Retort.

Having a burn-out, losing my job and studio have inspired me to really take a good look at myself and made me think and realise what I really want. What I want is to continue being an artist, make money with my art and art related activities!

This April I rearranged my home so I can use that as my studio and maybe even as a space to teach. Who needs a proper livingroom when most of your living consists of drawing?!
See you next week!


Something I'm working on (sorry, not a great pic)

Back in the blogging game!!

After a hiatus of almost 7 months I’m back in the blogging game!
Long story but I want to start out on a positive note. Last year I participated in the Lemniscaat illustration contest and I’m planning to do so again this year so here is a detailed sketch of one of the images I’m working on :)