ABOUT ME
At a very young age, I was already taking weekly drawing lessons. In 1975, I started visiting the studio of Brother Beatus Nijs in Hilversum, who taught the classical methods. I would draw still lifes, classical plaster busts, et cetera. It was all about ‘learning to see’.
During a spell at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rotterdam (today the Willem de Kooning Academy), my work was more abstract – a sign of the times. But my passion laid – and lies – in the figurative arts. So, I quit the Academy and went on to hone my self-taught skills.
Exhibitions with mixed-media and graphic works followed. And soon, I was receiving commissions as a graphic designer. This resulted in owning my own business: a communications agency, with a small and dedicated staff. But I always continued painting.
And since classical portraiture is once again en vogue, I have been painting full-time. Over the past 25 years, I have dedicated myself to painting oil portraits, on commission.
