The eye
30×40, 2007
Private collection, Rijswijk
An uninterrrupted stare is viewed as threatening or discomforting, even if the person staring is not perceived as a threat.
This work started life as a little joke on a fellow painter, who had just finished a portrait in cooperation with another painter. Bothe painted half of a portrait. When I remarked on that, she seemed embarassed that she had forgotten to invite me.
When this painting was in my house I hung it in my lavatory on eye level as an experiment. The remarkable effect on male visitors was that many seemed to be quite quick in finishing their “business”.