Sittard Pumpstation

 

Made a nice bike trip today, came across this old 1915 waterpump station, decided to draw it. Sepia ink in a Pentel parrallel fountain pen.

Concentration camp Bergen Belsen

 

 

I made a trip to Laboe, at the Ostsee, in the north of Germany. Driving back I decided to make a little detour to visit Bergen-Belsen. That is the location of one of the worst Concentration camps of the Germans. Anne Frank was brought here from Auschwitz, and spent a few misearble weeks here, before she died of Typhus, in March 1945, just a few weeks before the camp was freed by the Allied troops.

Even though there are almost no remnants from the former camp, it is still an eerie place, with large massgraves in a parklike setting. And a solemn and quite impressive musuem. I was glad I did the detour. 

 

The Hague Cityscape

 

Abother drawing of the National Dutch Urban Sketching weekend.In the Hague on Saturday, I made another Illustrated Cityscape drawing like I did last April in Gouda. I made a foldout that fits my drawing board. I used a sheet 55x65cm bamboo paper, the watercolourpencils are Derwent Inktense. THey are really good for this kind of work.

 It is the square in front of the Royal palace "Noordeinde", and even though it was hot (we have a heatwave now) there was a large tree so I could stay in the shadow, 

Scheveningen Kurhaus

 

I helped organize a National Dutch Urban Sketching weekend. Saturday 20th in the Hague, Sunday at the beach in Scheveningen. It was really hot there, we have a record breaking heat wave at theis moment.

After managing the central meeting post, I had some time left to make this drawing on the Boulevard, at the seaside: the old Kurhaus building. Ink and watercolour in my Khadi sketchbook.

Chevrolet Impala SS

 I went to a vintage car meeting yesterday, the Cruise-In Summer Series in Heerlen. There was this beautiful brown-black Chevrolet Impala SS from the 60s. I talked to the owners, always nice to the enthousiasm they put in these cars.

Santos

 

A drawing inspired by a similar subject by Joao Santos.

Amstenrade

 The church of Amstenrade, just maybe 500 meters from my house. Yes I live in Hoensbroek,but the citylimits are approximately at my backgarden. Actually, I was born in Amstenrade, live in the same house I was born in, but gthat is Hoensbroek/Heerlen now, Anyway, it started to drizzle, that's why the colours mix. I kind of like the effect. Next time on purpose.

Schinveld, Nonke Buusjke

 

This afterrnoon, I took a nice ride on my bike, wanted to draw some cows, couln't find hem, so I drew this old farmhouse instead. It's a open air museum showing domestic life 100 years ago, and called Nonke buusjke (local dialect, to be translated as: our uncle living in the woods).

Heerlen: Glass palace

 

Glaspaleis / Schunck. My city used to be rich and bursting of energy, in the coal mining era. In 1930 a department stote commisioned the architect Peutz to design a store. It resulted in this fully glassed square building, with elegant and visible columns, thin cantilevered concrete floors and a penthouse for the Schunck family. It's nearly 100 years old but could have been made today. It;s a museum and library now. This morning I picked my painting up from the exhibition there.

 

Valkenburg (3)

Also the Urban Sketching meeting in Valkenburg, a very quick one, maybe 10-15 minutes. The man was actually a statue, so he did not move :) .
 

Something different

 A random image of a face, inspired by an image I saw on Pinterest. Just fun to do. Sepia ink and watercolour on Khadi paper.

Valkenburg (2)

Here another sketch of the Urban Sketching Meeting of last saturday in Valkenburg.
 

Valkenburg: USk.

 

The Maastricht Urban Sketchers met today in Valkenburg. The group was about 12 people, we even had three from Eupen (Belgium) with us. The weather was lovely. I managed to make 3 drawings, this is one of them.

 

Bones

 

Something random. Just started doodling.

Amsterdam

 

My wife and I had a few nice days off to celebrate our wedding anniversary: one to Utrecht, one to Amsterdam. I managed to make these 2 quickies on the Prinsengracht. 

Passaasj Heerlen

 

I am very proud that one of my paintings was selected for the exhibition "Passaasj" in Heerlen. Out of 500 artists (both professional and amateur) 100 works were selected, among other this piece. Theme of the exhibition was "at home". This painting refers to the cold winters in the 60s, where my Father would bring in fresh coals for the hearth in these kind of buckets. And it also refers to our forme coal-mining region.

Gouda: sketchday

 

Last Saturday I helped organize a National Urban Sketching Netherlands day. This time in Gouda. I had visited Gouda for preparation purposes early March (see some of the sketches below), so I figured I would try something else now.

As it happened, last week I read the Thesis of Tania Cardoso "The illustrated cityscape: Imperfect lines of urban exploration", a very interesting scientific text on illustrating the urban environment.

I used her methodology to make this drawing, on a 50x70cm piece of paper. The cross-form was based on the fact that my backpack can only handle a 25x30cm drawing board and drawings. In this way I could fold the paper to that size. I used Inktense watercolour pencils, which I found to be quite suitable for this purpose. I hadn't used them fo maybe 10 years.....

Anyway, an experiment worth repeating. 

Portrait

 

Live portrait session, with palette knife, last monday.50x60 acrylic..

Brunssummerheide

 

We had temperatures of above 20 degrees this week, very early. I went out to the Brussummerheide, a forest area a few kilometers from my home. I usually run there. Two impressions in ink and watercolour.

Hair in ink

 

Portrait in Ink, based on a vintage picture I found on the internet. Could not find the photographer.

Washed out ink on Khadi handmade all-cotton paper.