In the Nordic and Greek Mythology, Gaia was the great mother of all: the primal Greek Mother Goddess; creator and giver of birth to the Earth and all the Universe.
I don’t know yet how, but I am investigating how to implant this theme into my work, into my art. So these sketches are part of my research.
I was not present at the time, but I think these drawings where made approximately one hour after Charles Darwin published his book “On the origin of species”, in 1859.
By the way, these drawings are for sale. If you do buy them, I will donate the money to charity: “SAVE THE DINOSAUR”.
I finished this piece last week. Slightly different than my other work. Less detailed, brighter colours and with less depth. The blue at the bottom for instance, has the same brightness, the same tonality, as the blue at the top. That makes the painting more flat.
In contradiction to that, there seems to be a sort of horizon at 2/3 of the painting. But the white at the top…? Sky? (but why does it stops then?). And are we looking down on something, or are we just facing a pile of colourful blocks? …..
Hopefully I have the time to frame it and use it for the exhibition that starts at the 17th of april in Harlingen (beautiful town at the coast in the north of the Netherlands). It’s still wet (oilpaint), so I have to wait.
Well, my job as a teacher is, not only to challenge my students, but also to broaden their horizon. To force them to think out of the box.
I show them the picture made by Gerhard Richter: “Betty”. At first glance, they think it is a picture, a “photo”. And are surprised when I tell them, it is an oilpainting. “Wow, how realistic, great artist, this guy knows how to do the job”.
Then I show them the other, abstract paintings of Richter. Without telling them that these paintings are made by the same artist. They are confused. They don’t have the experience in “seeing”, to judge these paintings, to “come to a verdict”.
And of course, to enlarge their confusion, I finally tell them, it’s the same artist.
Leonardo Da Vinci: “There are three classes of people: Those who see, Those who see when they are shown, Those who do not see.