Henk Pander

A Facebook friend of mine recently ran up a sort of challenge where she assigned her commentors each a particular living artist to research. I got this guy; Henk Pander.

His stuff is a strange and arresting mashup of organic and mechanical imagery with an emphasis on wreckage. His human and demihuman figures seem to float - or struggle - through a landscape of broken machinery and shattered buildings.

What intrigues me, other than the purely visual enjoyment, is that Pander's bio puts him in Holland during WW2; he was between 7 and 8 when the German army was chased out of the Netherlands. Clearly some of his work is directly influenced by his childhood, but I wonder; how much of the rest, those visions of life amid the ruins, can also be traced back to his young life under Nazi occupation?

Pander is an Oregonian today, and I like to think that he was also influenced by one of our most delightful public memories: the exploding whale.

Boom, baby!

The Square Deal

Missy has been inspired by her mom's sewing-craftiness to try her own hand at quiltmaking:



Of course the dominant color is pink. Duh! Princesses always use pink. I do like the subversive bits of black in there; I sense a touch of future Goth Princess there.

Clearly Lily the Cat approves.



What do you think?

Dance, fool

[This illustration is from "Book of Fools", a photo collection from local artist Nancy Hill. If you have the inclination, you might follow the link and look at her stuff. Much of it is lovely, and worth parting with a dollar for the artistry as well as the good deed of supporting a terrific Portland and Oregon photographer

It's a quirky little book, full of the most mordant images imaginable, from the bleak fool ruling his deluded country, to the fools for love, and the fools and their money. For when have any of us not been a fool in our times and seasons.

But I just love this barefoot fool dancing because, when you think about it, sometimes there's not nothing else you can do but dance.]