China, Beijing, CCTV and Birdsnest.

The latest update on two of the most impressive buildings I have seen recently: the CCTV tower in Beijing and the "birdsnest", also Beijing. The pictures were made last week by our special correspondent (Floor, the tourleader of our visit to China last year). The weather looks more bright than what we had.

De CCTV toren en het vogelnestje (t.b.v. de olympische spelen) in Beijing. Foto's gemaakt door Floor, onze reisleidster van onze China reis.

Gala St.Jan

Gisterenavond was het schoolverlaters gala van het St.Janscollege. Rianne en haar vriend Bob in grootse stijl. De trotse ouders staan niet op de foto.
My daughter Rianne and her friend Bob, at the grand final exam gala, yesterday evening. Everything to be proud of.

China Dino (2)

The China Dinosaurus exhibition in the Maastricht library draws to an end. I went there today to make some more sketches. The first one is a 8 meter high Yangchuanosaurus. You would not like to meet him 150.000.000 years ago. The bottom one is a Mamenchisaurus. In reality his neck is 3 times as long, but it did not fit on the page. To see its head, see my post of 2 weeks ago.

DSM

Another try with my new brush pen, a sketch of a Edea-transformer station somewhere on the DSM chemical plant.

BMW in Shenyang

Today a collegue of mine, Andre van Drunen, went to work for another Tebodin office, in Hengelo. A few years ago I did a project with him: the design of a BMW carfactory in China, up north in Shenyang. It was a very difficult project, but we had a great time in the long summerevenings behind a few good beers in the Munich beergardens. Some contrast with the dust and chaos of China. I made this painting for him: it is the entrance of the Chinese car plant during costruction. Based on some very old scribbels.

Brush pen

Bought a Pentel brush pen this week. A cross between a fountain pen and brush. The above sketch of a Banyan tree is the result of a few hours experimenting. I used a drawing of a tree that I found on Flickr (by Jane Y). I kind of like the result.
Afgelopen week een Pentel brush pen gekocht en uitgeprobeerd. Wel even wennen, zie bovenstaand resultaat van een Banyan boom. Model stond een tekening die ik op Flickr vond.

China Dino (1)

Went to the China Dino exhibition in the library of Maastricht. They exposed full Dinosaur skeletons coming from China! 140.000 years old!

Here the sketches I made on site. Awesome! The large one was a 30 ton heavy mamenchisaurus, the other was a 10kg heavy pterodactilus (Dsungaripterus). Some contrast.

Schetsen van de China Dino expositie in Maastricht.

Hoensbroek Castle

A sketch of the little tower in the corner of the Hoensbroek-castle complex. As a child people said it used to house people suffering from the plague. Don't know if it's true, but it gave way for imagination. We called it the plaguetower for that.
De pesttoren van Kasteel Hoensbroek. Als kind hoorden we dat daar melaatsen in hadden gezeten. Bracht in ieder geval je fantasie op hol.

Patersweg

Verhuizing komt eraan. Zo willen we dat de huiskamer gaat uitzien. Our plans for the redecoration of the our new (old) house.

Eastern and snow

Eastern and snow. Pasen in de sneeuw.

Sketches out of the dust

We are starting to pack to go to our new home. I found these 30 year old sketches under layers of dust; yes the sepia background colour is real. I had forgotten about these drawings. It's from '78, and I should have been making homework.
De verhuizing komt eraan, en bij het inpakken kwam ik deze oude tekening tegen. Uit '78, ik had eigenlijk mijn huiswerk moeten maken.

Toulouse or Japan?

I know this looks like a garden somewhere in Japan, but in reality it was next to my hotel in Toulouse! I went out for a stroll in the "Jardin de Compans-Cafarelli" before breakfast, when I encoutered this view, including apple and prune trees in full blossom.
Ik weet het, dit lijkt op een vijver ergens in Japan, maar in werkelijkheid is dit een park naast het Mercure Hotel in Toulouse. Een wandeling in de vroege morgen door de Jardin Compans-Cafarelli; en dan dit uitzicht incl. bloesemende appel en pruimenbomen.

Tarbes&Toulouse, last week

Was in Toulouse for the 5th time this year. But we also went to visit Lannemezan, near the Pirenees mountains (which were beautiful with snow). We slept at the Rex hotel in Tarbes-a beautiful design hotel. I was perplexed with the high quality of the design in the hotel: bathrooms with glass sliding walls and Starck bathtubs. Design chairs on every floor, and exterior walls that change colour every minute, making your room appear different all the time. even the toiletpaper was in style: black. I made some sketches.
In Tarbes, tegen de Pyreneeen, sliepen we in het Rex hotel. Het hotel was helemaal "design" ingericht en had een glazen buitenwand die elke minuut in kleur veranderde. De kamers waren fantastisch ingericht: glazen schuifwanden, Starck badkuipen en zelfs zwart toiletpapier.

E40

A few weeks ago, on the E40, somewhere between Liege and Brussels. Tussen Luik en Brussel, op de E40.

Krupka, last week

I was in czech republic, visiting the Knauf Krupka plant. We were staying in the Vladimir Hotel in Usti. It was a vintage 70's hotel in its original but now worn out state. It was like the town: Usti must have been a nice city on the Elbe river, but destroyed by -now abandoned- 60's and 70's building projects. See sketch.

In Tsjechie, bezoek aan de Knauf glaswolfabriek in Krupka. We verbleven in het Vladimir hotel in Usti, ooit een aardige plaats aan een bocht van de Elbe. Maar helaas verknoeid door -nu verlaten- jaren 60 en 70 gebouwen.

50

This is what I found under the carport today. Thanks to the kids. What can I say.

Abraham gezien. En dus vond ik dit onder de carport vanmorgen.

Das cabinet des dr. Caligari

I found a terrific site: www.stage6.com. They have a unbelievable collection of classic movies like "das cabinet von Dr. Caligari". I saw parts of this movie when I was very young, about 6, at my aunts "tante Pia" house. I had vivid nightmares, I can still recall some scenes, but I never saw the movie again. Untill yesterday. Strange, even for a 1920 (!) film it had terrific artistic quality and plot twists that makes the expressionist film style the only logic choice. See it for yourself. I had to do something with the pictures still in my mind, I tried to capture the atmosphere in the ink drawing.
"Das cabinet des Dr. Caligari": een film uit 1920. Daar had ik al in 1964 nachtmerries van, en nu -in 2008- een hernieuwde kennismaking. Niet meer van deze tijd, maar toch geweldig. Die beelden moet ik verwerken, vandaar de tekeing in oi-inkt.

Toulouse, last week

Toulouse with fine weather: real spring, and it's only halfway february. Made a walk in the evening and made some sketches near the river. The sketches ware made at 23.00 in the night, but I painted them later in my hotelroom as if it was day. That is called artistic freedom.

Toulouse met een heerlijke heldere zon en 16 graden. Lente halverwege februari. Tijdens een avondwandeling (23.00) maakte ik deze schetsen bij de rivier. De terrassen zaten toen nog vol jeugd. De sluis van de Brienne, en een detail van een romaanse kerk: de St. Pierre des cuisines.

De Uiver, Doenrade

Op het terrein van de landrover dealer "de uiver" (genoemd naar de DC2 die in 1934 de vliegrace naar Melbourne won) in Doenrade staat een overblijfsel van een vliegende bom. Ik dacht altijd dat het een Duitse V1 was uit WO2, maar die zien er anders uit. Eens een keer uitzoeken. Het vliegtuigje moet de Uiver voorstellen, in werkelijkheid was de DC2 2-motorig.

A remnant of a flying bomb, standing on the terrain of a cardealer in Doenrade, Limburg.

Kowrenne 2008: Zoetekow

Koerennen 2008. Regen. Wind. Kou.