It was one morning in november, when i was about to go to town to get me a passepartout for one of my larger pictures and i needed a cover for my painting to get it safe to the shop. I remembered the grey portfolio of watercolored paintings from school stuffed in a dark corner of a room under the roof.
And then they were in my hands, the fruits of a brave young schoolboy, who back then nearly everything did what the teacher said.
When I saw this painting I still was remembering the task that our teacher presented to the class back then. What about you creating an animal that is your very own, composed from all the animals you know or like. The eyes of a frog, the legs of an elephant and so on. Just ask your fantasy and then let it happen. When the teacher saw that all his pupils, it was a boys only school, began their work, he put his feet on the desk and began reading a huge newspaper. When finally the school bell rang, my work was done.
“What a masterpiece”, the old man I was now resumed with a smile. So I took it with me, made a photo of it, did my first variations on my smartphone, made a print of that and took it with me to my painting table. This must be done sensitively, i thought. Then I honestly discussed every little idea I had with my former boyish self and finally the picture came out, you see on the print. The two of us love it. Yes we do. And I had forgotten the portfolio under the roof. I fetched it the other day and went to town.