I was born in Einhoven, the Netherlands in 1986 and since the age of ten I'm drawing regularly.
My prime interest was reproducing places, towns villages I had seen on holidays. Drawing cities from a birds-eye perspective became a more and more time consuming business besides school.
Sometimes I worked for months on end on one single drawing. Thanks to a visit to Rome I began to realize the endless oppertunities painting has to offer as well besides drawing.
My artwork consists out of two distinct types of work.
First the cityscapes, made up yet realistic impressions of cities mainly in Europe and North America.
The buildings are all drawn in the appropriate architectural style of each city. Occasionally I do use some reference material as a reminder of certain specific architectural details. Secondly there are the paintings.
I like to paint whenever I feel the need to reproduce memory's and images I found when travelling.
The painted images themselves tend to be combinations of several impressions. I've always found a lot of inspirartion in city's such as London and New York although I also like to look for ideas in old industrial towns or in Eastern Europe.
When painting, just like the cityscapes I try to reproduce the same feeling I had when witnessing a scene in the real world.
There is no intellectual concept behind my work. Why should ther be any The style and methods I employ when I paint and draw are probably considered unusual, I do not make any preliminary sketches, everthing comes from an inner eye.
It more or less wants to see a feeling, a realistic feeling in color or lines.
When that feeling is strong enough I make a underdrawing on paper en start drawing or painting until I find the work good enough to consider it finished.
Should there be any meaning present I hope it will be the viewers own.
My favourite artists are Edward Hopper and Andrew Wyeth. By looking at their work I was able to develop my own style.
Education:
I am fully self taught although I briefly attended two artschools.
Exhibitions:
KunstRAI 2017. Solo presentation at KunsRAI artfair by Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery. Amsterdam, NL. 2017.
Realism Amsterdam. Solo presentaion at Realist artfair 2017 by Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery. Amsterdam, NL. 2017.
Amsterdam Drawing Fair 2016. Solo presentation at KunstRAI artfair by Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery. Amsterdam, NL. 2016.
KunstRAI 2016, solo presentation by Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery. Amsterdam, NL. 2016
Four Masters, MC Escher, Stefan Bleekrode, Daan de Jong & Kees Timmer. Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery, Utrecht, NL. 2015.
Urban Silence, solo presentation, Galerie Mueller, Luzern, Switzerland. 2015
New Works, duo presentation, Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery, Utrecht, Netherlands. 2015
KunstRAI, solostand; Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery, Utrecht Netherlands. 2015
The City at Museum IJsselstein, group show, IJsselstein Netherlands, 2014-2015
MC Escher Daan de Jonge & Stefan Bleekrode, group show, Frank Welkenhuysen Gallery, Utrecht Netherlands 2014
Stefan Bleekrode at Galerie Mueller, solo presentation, Luzern Switzerland. 2014
Drawn, Artists Highlighted, group show, Galerie Janssen, Eindhoven Netherlands. 2014
(and several other shows during 2013-2014)
Stadtlandschaften & Raummodule, Konvex, duo presentation, Bern, Switzerland.