'Just friends' - Stan Getz & Chet Baker

This painting is based on a concert by Stan and Chet in 1983 in Stockholm. There are no good photos of this concert and there is only a one-sided angle of filming. That's why I made a compilation that makes it interesting. Stan is shown larger in the foreground, but Chet, in his typical bent-over posture on a high stool, is more exposed. This forms an interesting balance in the image between the two.

The recordings of this legendary concert are a jewel to watch for me; from the beginning where Stan is interviewed, to the end where Chet is so absorbed in the game that he is playing a piece of Stan. They only performed twice with each other, in 1953 and 1983.

This is the third painting I made of Chet, see also: Chet Baker and Chet & Halema.
Format: 85 x 120 cm - Date: 10 - 2019.

In this painting I have created a 'Sweet Miami atmosphere', with the 'Playboy looks' that Chet had, the contemplation in his face and the shadow between Chet and Halema. Halema's hand seems to be close to Chet's trumpet as if she's holding him, leaning her head on his arm. What she seems to surrender to him, he stares into the depths, only lightly connected to her in his own world.

Chet Baker was in the 50s for three years together with the beautiful Halema Ali. He also had a son with her. Their short marriage soon turned out to be a roller coaster for Halema, with light and dark periods. Chet was privately a difficult man to live with, struggled to keep relationships equal and sometimes showed aggressive behavior.

This is the third painting I made of Chet, see also: Chet Baker and Stan Getz & Chet Baker.
Format: 85 x 120 cm - Date: 06 - 2019.

Jimi Hendrix is still revered as a musical genius, especially for his revolutionary, flamboyant and virtuoso ways of playing the guitar.

He was seen less as the modest, sincere, vulnerable, philosophical boy that he was. A hard worker who radiated when he stood on stage and forgot everything around him. I have expressed this in this painting; work hard, have fun and enjoy the flow. Beyond the theatrical. The background shows the "fireworks" that he triggered with his guitar playing. The expressiveness of his almost closed eyes give him something magical.
Size 122 x 102 cm - Date: 05-2019.

John's powerful, telling look with his fist holding on to what he had found - in my view -: his wife Alice. She sits in the background, but bathed in light. Two great "spiritual" musicians.

After John freed himself from heavy drug use, he met his beloved Alice. With her by his side, he was able to further deepen the spiritual path he had taken. Apart from Western beliefs and more focused on Eastern spirituality. Great work has emerged from this, including 'A love supreme'. Alice was certainly not in his shadow but showed John the light more.

See also the painting: 'John Coltrane'.
Format: 80 x 122 cm - Date 12 - 2018.

Dexter Gordon entered a cafe in Rotterdam a long time ago where my father saw him. Walked to the bar and drank everything on the counter. Now he felt drunk, but sure enough. He stumbled onto the stage and started to play flawlessly as if nothing had happened and he had no problems. Dexter.

Unfortunately I had no image of this, but this beautiful image (after a black-and-white photo of Herman Leonard), in which a young Dexter is sitting in Royal Roost New York, smoking behind his saxophone. Background to the scene is fictional.
Format: 92 x 130 cm (incl. Frame) - Date: 05 - 2013.

The life of Billie Holiday unfortunately has more tragedy than Happiness. She also had little luck in her love life. But she did have a strong bond with Lester Young. However, a band like 'brother and sister'. When Lester died she was not allowed to sing for her 'Prez' at the funeral. Because of this, Billie almost succumbed to frustration and grief and said she was the next person to die. Billie also died a few months later.

This painting originated from a screenshot from the recording of "Fine and mellow". The background to the scene is made up, or rather spontaneously. The platonic love between Billie and Lester might have been stronger than if it had not been platonic. In the painting you see the subtle connection between the two.
Size 120 x 160 cm - Date 12 - 2016.

There is much to see in this large painting. Nine men and one woman. The woman is the center of the painting. The special thing is that all men seem to look at her, but only the man in the back really looks at her. The man next to her has just said something to her, which charms her. She does not have a cup of coffee, this would not suit wine, but a cup of tomato soup. The tomato, also called the love apple, symbolizes the game of seduction. However, the woman's blue dress symbolizes her spiritual purity. From a distance, the man who spoke to her seems to be laughing, from up close he looks more serious. Outside it is dark, inside the Grand Café is warmly lit.

A painting in which you increasingly discover.
Format: 110 x 155 cm - Date: 10 - 2018.

Nat & Frank never performed on stage together as far as I know. They were good friends and their voices and way of singing matched each other perfectly. During a performance in Vegas that is not on screen, Nat was not allowed to stay in the same hotel as Frank, this was so absurd that Frank himself refused to stay there, which led to Nat King Cole also being admitted.
Format 120 x 80cm - Date 05 - 2020