Horizons

I find myself more and more attracted to oblong panels. It's hard to pin down exactly what I like about them so much. It probably has to do with the character of the landscape I'm painting. Those of you who visited the Netherlands know that it's as flat as a pancake. The closest thing to a hill is an overpass. And even our defense line against the ocean, the dunes, have a strong horizontal aspect. And it's this aspect that's fits in with really well with an oblong format.

Beach with Tyre Tracks, oil on panel, 150 x 50 cm

Sunset, oil on panel, 150 x 35 cm

This coming June I got a solo show in The Hague (the Netherlands), where I hope to show a number of these panels. Let me know what you're thinking!

In the meantime work on the new video is steadily progressing. We got a new HD camera. Amazing quality. Can't wait to present the footage. Have to be patient though. It'll take at least a couple of months before it's ready. What I can show you though is a clip that'll probably be in the video. It's on the subject of color mixing, especially about how to mix colored greys. Fairly technical, but if you're into painting it might be interesting. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have a question!

Reflections, the video

A few weeks ago we started shooting the second long play video after 'Painting Clouds'. Don't know when it will be released, but it will take a few months. Awful lot of work. The title will be 'Reflections'.

The video will show me working on a 120 x 90 cm painting of a beach with clouds reflecting in the wet sand. Last year I made an oil sketch of the subject and I was curious what it would be like on a large panel. Some of you may remember I wrote about it in 2014 in my 9 Oct post.

Oil sketch, 40 x 30 cm

The title also refers to short intermezzi in which I will reflect on what inspires me, much like the latest video I posted on YouTube.

I found some really funny drawings I made as a five year old. I'll show a few of them in the video. I can clearly remember the moment I drew them. How hard it was to get them right and how dissatisfied I was with the results. Some things never change... Here's one to give you an idea.

Shells, ball point, 1956

Painting with a camera in your neck is a strange experience. At first I was aware of every move I made, but I'm slowly getting used to it. The camera man is a close friend, who also shot the Painting Clouds video. He knows how I work, so there are very few interruptions in the painting process.

Of course there is always a possibility the painting goes horribly wrong and we'll have to start all over again. That would make an interesting video: 'How not to paint reflections'. We'll see.

I'll keep you posted!