Gent 08-05-23, Drawing, Pencil/Colored Pencil on Paper, 2023

Corné Akkers  

A graphite sketch 'Gent– 08-05-23' shows a different landscape to change. Usually, I see myself wandering in the Haaglanden region, looking for artistic motifs. This time, a city in Belgium is on the table. The reason was twofold. I wanted to go out and see new places. The other was that I had a meeting with the owner of a gallery in Oostende, called Galerie d'O. It is a beautiful gallery and they present high-level art. This is exactly where to send my work, so to follow. Whatever, back to the origin and reason of this work of art. On taking the E40, I passed Ghent ('Ghent' in English). I thought I would take the exit for this city. Grand Musée. You see, there is this magnificently beautiful museum (Museum voor Schone Kunsten or 'MSK') just outside the city center. It is also close to the highway and it turned out that parking is free on a Sunday. So no need to look for parking, to struggle in busy streets like in Amsterdam for example. Grande collection and I particularly liked their paintings by Jeroen Bosch and Van de Woestyne. After my visit, I walked to the center. There, I saw why there was so much parking space in front of the museum. One could literally walk above the heads of all the visitors. Buses full of tourists flood the narrow streets. A bit disappointing, it was. It's not that I have resentment towards them. It seemed that Ghent had completely adapted its operation to these massive crowds however. Lots of Döner and Dim Sum Palaces, fast-food chains and pizzerias. Sint Niklaaskerk. I had a vision of myself sitting on the banks of the Leie. Take a selfie with a beer and mussels for my parents. However, this turned out to be too ambitious a request to fulfill. The restaurants on the Graslei were all full and the mussels cost an astonishing 28 euros. I opted for fries and a fries soup from a famous Belgian 'frietkot' instead. The next thing was to take photos. There simply wasn't enough space or a bench to sit and sketch outside. I found the Sint-Niklaaskerk (Saint Nicholas Church). In the back, I had a beautiful view of the Emile Braun Square. Suddenly, the sun appeared through the clouds. Lots of leafy structures to capture. I had the same drawing execution in mind as for my last drawing of Berg en Dal. See how it appears applied to structures made by man. Simple suggestion, I had a good time representing people lying on the grass. It is rewarding to see that only a few sketches in the back can show many people. It is due to the more elaborate and larger ones in the front. The power of suggestion can make it seem that there are many things happening. It makes me want to do more in the future. I look forward to better weather. The icy cold has finally gone. Graphite sketch (Sakura 0.5 mm, 4B) on Winsor & Newton Bristol board (21 x 14.8 x 0.1 cm – A5 format) Artist: Cornè Akkers :: Drawing :: Cubism :: This piece is accompanied by an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to hang: No :: Signed: Yes :: Signature location: Bottom right :: Paper: Portrait :: Original: Yes :: Framed: No