Don Quichotte

The Spanish writer Cervantes became famous by writing about an anti-hero figure, Don Quichotte de la Mancha. A self proclaimed knight, fighting against windmills (who doesn't) to conquer the heart of an imaginary girlfriend (who hasn't). The story was written about 400 years ago, but the characters show the same behaviour as we do nowadays.
Just think about how we try to solve the economic crisis...

But that's not the only point I want to make. What wonders me most is that we still can read and enjoy a story written 400 years ago, but when I tried a couple of weeks ago to play a PC game I bought 14 years ago, my computer can't handle it. The game is too old and the computer, bought in 2004, too modern for that game.
When I buy a PC game today, my computer also can't handle it. Then my 7 year-old computer is suddenly too old. Very frustrating. It's about time that someone stands up against the computerindustry. With its new updates (do you ever know what they put in your computer?), new operating systems and processors that can't cope with not yet antique games. Or will that be fighting against windmills?

Pen and watercolor, based on a drawing by Gustave Doré.

Quentin Blake

One of the many pleasures reading Roald Dahl was looking at the illustrations made by Quentin Blake. His work is nowadays still as vivid, funny and lively as it was decades ago. Whenever you get the chance in a bookshop to stumble upon a book he illustrated, don't hesitate to buy it or get at least a glimps of his work. Otherwise take a look at his website .

Vincent van Gogh

After a hard life, struggling with his talent and demons, Vincent van Gogh took his faith in his own hands. Before that he produces lots of paintings which were way ahead of their time, only to find out nobody wouldn't buy them. During his life he sold only one painting. After his death his painting of sunflowers was worth millions. How strange life can be.
He painted most of his, now, world-famous work in Southern France, so it's only logical that there's a museum named after him in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Pen and watercolor, 10x15 cm, after a self-portrait.

Mick Jagger

Old rockers were supposed to fade away, but Mick Jagger proves the experts wrong. 68 years and still going strong! Just released an instant classic album, in mine opinion, called Superheavy. Together with Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, Damian Marley and A.R. Rahman.

Pen and watercolor, 10 x 15 cm.

Rembrandt

As I was looking for people I would like to draw a portrait of, I thought to myself: "why not make a drawing of people I admire?". One of them is, for me, the great painter Rembrandt van Rijn. I made a drawing of him based on a self-portrait he made in 1669 at the age of 63. The original painting can be seen in the Tate Gallery in London or, to save you the trip, on this website .

I made my drawing with pen and watercolor, adding dry brush in the final stage.

Workshop

Last saturday I attended a beginners workshop portrait drawing. One of the exercises was to draw a selfportrait. The difficulty was that you weren't allowed to look on the paper to see what you were drawing. Purpose of the exercise was to let your hand 'feel' where the different parts of a face are. At the end I'm glad I don't look like my self-portrait!

One of the things that is important for your brain to recognize a face, is mainly the shape and size of stains that are 'hidden' in a face. Your brain doesn't really recognize a person by the looks and number of detail in his or her face. So one of the exercises was to make a portrait just by painting stains.

I must say it was very enlightening for me, also because I'm used to draw in a very detailed way. It's nice to know that there are other ways to make a drawing. Or portrait, in this case. Certainly a very well spend day and challenging to see what I can do with that knowledge in the nearby future.