Barend Blankert - Galerie Mokum 1965 magical realistic oil painting "night landscape with glass ball"

• Magnificent oil on panel painting with magical realistic representation of a night landscape with glass ball. Early work of the Drenthe artist Barend Blankert (1941-2023), who died last year. Following his death, a major retrospective of his work was held last year in the Drents Museum.
• This painting offered by us was part of the exhibition "Galerie Mokum presents twelve new figuratives" in 1965. Both the panel and the original frame are in good condition. Signed lower right.

Barend Blankert was born in Kampen in 1941 and grew up there. After high school he studied at the Rijksnormaalschool for drawing teacher training in Amsterdam. After teaching at various schools he became a teacher at the Academie Minerva in Groningen where he taught from 1971 to 1992.
Barend Blankert spoke about his working method in a 2001 interview by Peter Karstkarel:
My paintings come about very gradually. It starts with general observation. Certain things and people catch my eye, stick and then I start sketching them. I create a kind of drawn image archive. Sometimes those drawings and sketches are waiting for a long time. A general idea, an experience always forms the reason to start something new. I don't search, because then I never find anything of value. Such an image actually emerges more or less by itself and I have to help it. The people and things emerge from the sketches. Then it becomes more concrete and the sketches help with that directly or indirectly. Then follows the posing; exactly as it was imagined or as it has already been formed with the help of the sketches. The poses - of people from the immediate environment, family and friends and I often model myself - are photographed. I make large, tight transparency drawings based on those photos. I move them around until I have achieved the intended composition. The transparencies can then be transferred to panel. (source: Welkenhuysen)