This is an old one I rediscovered—a montage (non-digital) of cut-up bits of watercolour paintings—made when I was still living in Jakarta.
It was part of a set of illustrations for a World Wildlife Fund book, but was never actually used in the end.
Jakarta: History of a Misunderstood City
Cover illustration for ‘Jakarta—History of a Misunderstood City’ by Herald Van Der Linde.
I once lived in Jakarta, so it’s good to have a picture on a book about it. The illustration used is part of a much longer pen and ink drawing I made a while back. Big thanks to Anita Teo @marshallcavendish.
Indonesian flavourings
Indonesian flavourings. Essential to the mix. Kecap Manis from ABC and Sambal Oelek from Albert Heijn. These are more experiments with the ballpoint pen and sprayed isopropanol, plus a little bit of blue pencil here and there. Next it’s Marmite.
Planet Jakarta
Another pen and ink from 1998. This one did get used in the book, at least in the first edition. I’m not sure if it made it to the later reprints.
Jakarta street drawing—print
A print of my Jakarta street drawing at 57 x 9 inches on its way to Feny in Portland. Thank you Feny.
This is a print of a long (83 x 12 inches) pen & ink drawing I made in 1998 for a book I wrote about Jakarta, but which was never used in the end. Drawn with a Rotring Isograph if you remember them. Great pens. If you’re into pens.
Terry
Terry Collins. For years, Terry was one of the tallest things you could find in Jakarta. I made this picture to celebrate his 30 years there. One morning, about a year later, I got an email saying Terry was dead. Then later still I heard they’d used this picture at his memorial service.
I miss Terry.
Student in Jakarta
Tailor in Blok M Square
Downstairs in Blok M Square, south Jakarta.
Drawing of Blok M, Jakarta
Drawing of Blok M from a window at Hotel Falatehan. “It’s no oil painting” as my friend Ian would say. It really isn’t. It’s monumentally ugly but I still love it. I worked here for three years in the 90s, and my son was born here too.
If you’d like to hear how Blok M sounds, you can listen here.
Indonesia Sejak Saat Itu
Article in Kompas about the current exhibition in Cultuurcentrum Strombeek, featuring my collaboration ‘Indonesia Sejak Saat Itu‘ with Elisabeth Ida Mulyani.
