Just realized I didnā€™t tell you about experiment # 3: claybord by Ampersand. I had big hopes for
this one because on the leaflet that comes with the claybord it says: ā€˜absorbent (ā€¦), perfect for
inks, gouache, egg tempera, pencil (ā€¦)ā€™ so I thought it would be perfect for my ink and
pencil combination.

When I got it out of the wrapping the surface felt smooth. I wondered how this was going to
absorb and hold watery materials. Well, it didnā€™t.

To save the mess I tried to sand the surface and that helped a little but didnā€™t give the results
that I was hoping for. So as for Ampersand surfaces Iā€™ll stick to the aquabord.

For the drawing below I used Derwent Inktensepencils, Lukas Illucolor Pigmented ink
and it is done on Ampersand aquabord.


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Right after I said ā€˜yesā€™ to the commission of the adoption announcement I got a call from a
friend of mine. He asked how I felt about putting together a painting in a Bauhaus kinda
abstract way.
First I asked when it was supposed to be finished. Luckily I would have plenty of time
first to finish the adoption announcement and then start on the painting.

I told him I didnā€™t do any regular (acrylics or oil) painting in 14 years but hey, itā€™s like riding a
bike, right? And did you notice I never do abstract art? Ahemā€¦

It ended up being a fun commission, solving all kinds of problems.
The painting needed to be 60 x 60 cm, depicting a red square, a blue circle and a yellow triangle.
Very Bauhaus. Also there needed to be structure in the painting, preferably the same
structures as the sculpture my painting should be based on. I think it turned out pretty well.


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Last week Iā€™ve been experimenting more on Ampersand bord. This time on aquabord.Ā 
Itā€™s a panel coated with a special clay mix that sort of absorbs water like a fine paper.
The reason why I wanted to try it out was the claim that watercolours can be displayed
without a glass frame.Ā 

Now Iā€™ve tried pastelbord and aquabord. Next is claybord and I will let you know which I like
best :)Ā 

The drawings I did were done in Lukas Illu-Color pigmented inks and Derwent Inktense pencils.


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Hereā€™s a experiment Iā€™m doing, working on pastelbord byĀ Ampersand the first time :)



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Finally I can show you what Iā€™ve been up to a few weeks ago! Iā€™ve been working on an
adoption announcement for a Dutch family that adopted a boy from Kenya.

They asked for a realistic (pencil) drawing, combining both Kenyan and Dutch elements.
On the front you can see a big ā€˜Mā€™ because the boyā€™s name starts with ā€˜Mā€™. A loving lioness with
cub and on top of the lioness the family dog. Next to the lioness and cub two stuffed
animals,Ā a zebra that the boy owns and to add something typical Dutch: Miffy (Nijntje)!
In the back baobab trees, very common in Kenya. Up in the sky the star constellation
Capricornus,Ā the constellation the boy was born under. The lion cub grabbing at the stars was
on the inside ofĀ the card next to some other drawings that Iā€™ll post later.

I really enjoyed doing this commission and Iā€™m glad the family was very happy with the result.

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