In the biography about Willem de Kooning (finished reading it, for the cause of this text see the blog) it is often said that he found being able to draw well the basis of all. Nowhere I found proof of his ability. In his early works he constantly corrected, nothing flowed out of his hand.

In his later drawings he escaped into avoiding drawing realistically. This made it easy to belief that he could draw. But instead of vibrating the drawings clatter.

The credo of these times was: ‘towards abstraction and free expression!’ He was declared holy; consequently all his drawings were considered masterpieces. He should have been protected against himself.

The only drawing from his early days that I know is the portrait made of Elaine. Not a bad drawing, but it shows his weaknesses. Made very patiently, carefully as if caressed and most of all very obedient. Where it really matters, he escapes into what beginners do; the eyes are too big. Everything is a cliché. Most of the drawing is of a soft shapelessness; the fingers are like sausages, there is no body under the dress.

In his later drawings the eyes and tits (another name I cannot give them) become banal ‘traffic-lights’. Nowhere have I found traces of a talent or interesting solutions like the giants I admire. No power or playfulness. No distinction created between object and surrounding space, just random lines on a blank piece of paper. Sure enough he brakes lose, but it leaves me cold (the text continues under the drawings).

Long ago I thought much of De Kooning… is it a pity that I read his biography, that I examined his work? He has lost much credibility: in his glory days too in love with himself, too little doubt, too banal.

Is there nothing left to appreciate? Of course there is: next to ‘Excavation’ there are ‘Pastorale’, ‘Morning: The Springs’ and ‘Pirate (Untitled II)’. I still love them. Is it obvious that they lack form, that they are so decorative?

All this I realized after having seen a documentary about Peter Vos. Like De Kooning said: drawing is the basis of all. From there you can take off.

Peter Vos is only known by some Dutch art lovers. Most of them old people. Is this Great Art? I don’t care, what I see is that this man could DRAW.

PETER VOS

Painters can be divided in three categories: the ones where it flows out of their hands (not that this means it comes easy), the ones that have to continuously correct and the ones who think they are great masters no matter how they come to a result.

Here a couple of by me admired great masters of the first category.

REMBRANDT, always he…

GOYA; a beast. Like what I showed of Rembrandt, most drawings in ink. No room for error.

PICASSO; another Spanish mastodon. Even after having parted from copying the realistic image, they keep their strength and credibility.

HORST JANSSEN. I visited his museum in Oldenberg. There was not much to be seen, he must have sold mainly to private art collectors. Unfortunately I didn’t see many of his erotic drawings and watercolors. He showed how one can make them without becoming banal…

When talking about erotism EGON SCHIELE cannot be forgotten. He died so young, but left so many great drawings.

One of the very, very best is HOKUSAI. No artist I know of has such a total control over the line. I sometimes try to copy his drawings and fail clamorously.

What about me… if I criticized De Kooning to bits and pieces I should also ‘pull my pants down and show my butt, ready for a good spanking’.

I am a slow and clumsy starter. Only after much mud the magic may happen. The line drawing is not my territory. I feel at home with volumes, brushstrokes.

This is why many sketches in my blocks end up solved with the Uni Posca markers. It is the end result that counts. Of importance is that the way the drawing is made serves the message.

The beginning: at the academy I sometimes put afford in the quick throwing down of the image. About ninety-nine percent of these works I have thrown away.

A series of male nudes each one made in ten minutes and a water color of a student, made in the same amount of time.

In Firenze I made many sketches and here too, I threw away most of the production.

Theatre and orchestra repetitions. Especially those of theatre I tried to solve in just one line.

The last years in Amsterdam and the first in Barcelona I worked with models.

In most of them I used white gouache to correct where I had gone wrong (click on the images to go to the video of sketches made of Esmeralda. Made in Barcelona between 2002 and 2005).

It is long ago that I worked with a model.

Next to my works in oil on canvas or gouaches on paper I have fun in my sketch-blocks (I started in 1980, here I show only some made in the last eight years). Some are in only line; others are finished with Uni Posca markers.

Many are executed in a realistic way, but I can also brake lose. It depends on what I want to say. Sometimes I copy other painter's works. Is it logical that I was never tempted to copy a De Kooning? 

The big question remains: can I draw? After forty years and some successful exhibitions I can confess; no, I don’t consider me a great talent. There is still so much to learn. After having seen the documentary about Peter Vos I should maybe feel ashamed.

July 30, 2021, Utrecht.