Two years have passed since my last blog post. Two years filled with books and some unexpected hurdles on the way. Meanwhile LIVING IRON, about the rich diversity of iron and the visual appeal of rust, has continued to grow and is now reaching completion. …
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Could it be that ‘it’ was in the air? That we walk around with themes that unconsciously develop in our head until they are ‘ripe’ to be triggered? This morning my eye was caught in the garden by extraordinary cobwebs in the dewy morning sunshine. They looked like solid…
Read moreWhat is the difference between a line – and certainly characters – drawn by hand and in print? How come that in the first case there is an unmistakable warmth which is hard to fake in print even if a collection of typeface imitates classical handwriting to perfection, specially adapted…
Read moreThe theme of imagination and play has not left me in the past weeks, as illustrated by hospital drawings, among others, which seem to have worried some of my friends recently. Sitting with the family around a Christmas fireplace, we discuss once…
Read moreAn entry in the ‘books’ supplement of our daily newspaper shows an amazing sketch of a person drawing in bed in what must be a most uncomfortable position. The lines are simple, the scene is gripping, it could be a child or an adult, but there is also a quality which…
Read moreWillpower does far more for us than to support achievements other people expect from us. We need it to listen to our deepest voice without being distracted. Making space for ourselves needs confidence and determination. Alan Watts describes its essence in his essay on…
Read moreHidden from view inside a park not too far from my home is a large building site. Contrary to most construction sites around us these days the entrance gate is never closed and, apart from the builders, hardly anybody ever comes there anyway. From a distance I watch the building…
Read moreAt the Venice Biennale of 1995, the entire Danish pavilion was occupied by only one artist, John Olsen. The space was light in its Scandinavian simplicity, yet the exhibition felt like a dense, intimate world. During my visit I was the only visitor, which added to the intensity of the…
Read moreIn line with a previous blog post about tree houses and bird’s nests, this is what I found by chance this week: With its retractable staircase this is a hotel room, the ‘Bird’s Nest’, at Treehotel Harads…
Read moreWe’re often being taught to expand, to research new things, to think big. But what about remaining true, at least for a while, to the small scale? The painter Giorgio Morandi found repeated inspiration (and fame) in a collection of bottles and pots. © Giorgio…
Read moreOur points of interest are not always aligned with everybody else’s taste and we sometimes tend to hide our dreams for fear of negative comments and discouragement. Years may pass before we feel confident enough to truly express ourselves. It is important to recognise our dreams, if only to encourage…
Read moreA rare sight in The Netherlands : half hidden behind a farmhouse, a crumbling hay barn. This country is generally so clean and organised that most people here would be shocked by my enthusiasm, of course, and this shed is certainly becoming dangerous to use. But my heart made a…
Read moreOne of my favourite places for photography to do with iron is a bulk terminal situated near the Dutch coast. I’ve had the chance to be there in different seasons and to watch the unexpected amount of wildlife it harbours. It is especially impressive in the month of June when…
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