Red was my favorite color for a long time.

The memories go back to the late fifties and early sixties. There was a photo of me in my red winter coat on a bridge in the Amsterdam park like a male 'Little Red Riding Hood' (unfortunately lost).

From the same period: my grandfather had made from small wooden pieces a puzzle (click on the boots for the story about him): triangles and squares painted in strong colors. My favorites were the triangles, painted in a mix of cadmium and alarzin crimson; bloody red. The temptation to put them in mouth was huge.

The fashion colors during my adolescent years were jeans blue, orange and dark brown. Red was ‘itchy’, still, I have walked around in dark red Mexican boots, suede - and leather shoes. Courage was needed.

After my academy years the palette consisted mostly of the red-green color scheme. This is the short scheme, around blue there are many more nuances.

A strong memory of my first Italian trip, to see where I was heading with my scholarship, is the red cape of cardinal Guido Bentivoglio in the Pitti museum in Florence (click on the cardinal for the text about my life there).

The 'cardinal' hung on the walls of the many studios over the years.

And then there was the portrait of the pope Innocenzo X in the Doria Pamphilj…

A side step: the first time I entered the room where this portrait 'lives', I was immediately blown out into the corridor. All went red for my eyes, the portrait needs to be approached carefully, it is a killer, it is frightning.

Thanks to Anna (click on the portrait to go to the blog about her) and Francesca Sinagra (the conservator of the museum) I have been able to see it outside official visiting hours.

Back to my palette. With much pain I succeeded to integrate the blues.

May the cause for these difficulties be my fixation with Francis Bacon and Rembrandt? Good example makes followers (sort of translation of a Dutch saying). Much messy blood spills over Bacon (what’s in a name) and Rembrandt hardly touched the blues.

It can be, that the high price of the lapis lazuli is the reason for Rembrandt to avoid it. At old age he was practically always broke.

For a long time I painted with ‘Amsterdam’ quality paint. This is study quality. One day I indulged myself with a BIG CADMIUM RED tube of the then still quality brand Lefranc-Bourgeois. It caused an earthquake on the palette. The last eruption of this tube took place on 'New York Life Red'.

Red, red and more red:

I glued a bloody red formica surface on my dinner table. The walls of my room turned to pink because of the reflections.

A steak has to be rare and accompanied by a glass of Barolo.

See the desk I built to write on.

I wore this kilt during the wedding of Nicole and Brian.

I could go on and on…

Red is the color of passion and true love, what does it say about me?

Some more images with tasty red…

I thought of all this when I reworked the Flower 018.

for a nice tune click here.

Barcelona, June 20 2020.