Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks online - Artwork 6 of 8: 'Aliens Night Out'

Recently I re-discovered some archived artworks that weren't available on the Mr. Upside webshop yet. This article describes the sixth artwork ('Aliens Night Out') as part of a series of eight blogposts on the new paintings and illustrations.

6. Illustration 'Aliens Night Out'

When I first started with making 'art' and illustrations with the idea to sell them, I liked doodling. As you maybe can see in the earlier works like 'Jungle' and 'Space' and even in the more structured 'City Madness' piece, I started with one long line. Randomly placed somewhere in the middle of the paper. From there I started drawing all kinds of objects and stuff without too much thinking of it. This process depends on enough speed because when you slow down and start thinking too much, the elements will look forced.

The same applies to this illustration 'Aliens Night Out'. Just like with many of my other artworks, I didn't think a name untill the end, when the painting was finished. And 'Aliens Night Out' shows some weird creatures, a city, stars, bright lights and a speakerbox. Hence the name.

The illustration is made with pink and blue Posca acrylic paint markers on a plain piece of cardboard.

Illustration 'Aliens Night Out' is yours for € 149 / $ 160 *

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks online - Artwork 5 of 8: 'Denim Vanilla'

Recently I re-discovered some archived artworks that weren't available on the Mr. Upside webshop yet. This article describes the fifth artwork ('Denim Vanilla') as part of a series of eight blogposts on the new paintings and illustrations.

5. Painting 'Denim Vanilla'

Artwork 'Denim Vanilla' shows bold vanilla white brush strokes on a dark denim blue background. It is one of very first paintings in the Bold Lines collection. More recent Bold Lines paintings show a less free, more organised and structured image. 'Denim Vanilla' has more character. It shows the rough edges of the brush strokes and the 'white space' is less calculated as the more recent Mr. Upside artworks.

The color combination of the denim and vanilla made the painting fit prefectly within our own, partly industrial interior. The canvas has therefore spent a substantial amount of time in our own living room.

Painting 'Denim Vanilla' is available in the Mr. Upside webshop for € 129 / $ 138

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks online - Item 4 of 8: Set of five luxe postcards

Actually this series of 8 blogposts talk about the re-discovery of some archived artworks that weren't available on the Mr. Upside webshop yet. But this article is not so much about a re-discovered artwork as it is about a re-designed set of Luxe Medium Postcards.

4. Set of five luxe postcards

The webshop has already a set of four Luxe Medium Postcards for sale but I also wanted to have a set of five postcards. A set with an more minimal back, to make it more versatile and even better for writing a nice message on the postcards.

I've been a fan of the Moo Cards and Moo as a printer for years. The printing quality is unmatched. The packaging is luxureous and similar to the high level that Apple uses for its packaging. The products are creative and the presentation is flawless.

I have never found printed matter on such super heavy paper. Let alone postcards and business cards consisting of several layers of pressed paper with one layer in a distinctive color.

Anyway, I liked the idea of having smaller products with Mr. Upside artworks on it, for a low price. It inspired me to do more similar products, which will be available soon in the webshop.

This set of five beautiful Luxe Postcards is yours for € 19,95 / $ 21,41 *

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks online - Artwork 3 of 8: 'Doodle II Red'

Recently I re-discovered some archived artworks that weren't available on the Mr. Upside webshop yet. This article describes the third artwork ('Doodle II Red') as part of a series of eight blogposts on the new paintings and illustrations.

3. Illustration 'Doodle II Red'

It depends slightly on the painting and the way of working but making a painting or illustration can be very meditative. That is certainly the case with the 'Doodle' paintings. The process was started without a preconceived plan or concept and the lines were drawn while the mind ran free. And although this painting isn't as balanced as some of the Bold Lines paintings, like Working Day, the end result is very useful for meditative purposes.

'Doodle II Red' was made with a regular red marker on grey cardboard and it looks best with a larger frame and passe-partout. It is great for gifts and small presents. Or the bright red can give your interior just the perfect boost.

Illustration 'Doodle II Red' is available in the webshop for € 39 / $ 41,85 *

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks online - Artwork 2 of 8: 'Blood Lines'

In the previous blogpost I mentioned the re-discovery of some archived artworks that weren't available on the Mr. Upside webshop yet. This article describes the second artwork ('Blood Lines I') in a series of eight. 

2. Painting 'Blood Lines I'

Painting 'Blood Lines I'  is actually part of a set of two paintings. This one is finished, the other one is still work in progress. It shows bold, thick red lines on a white background and that means it is part of the Mr. Upside Bold Lines collection. It's an abstract work and obviously 'conceived' in the graphic design roots of Michiel Nagtegaal / Mr. Upside.

As with many artworks, the challenge in making Bold Lines lies in the balance between the various shapes. The whitespace between the (red) lines is equally important to the red of the lines. Making the Bold Lines paintings is always an exciting moment as it is an improvisation and no preliminairy sketches are made. Each error is not easily corrected and sometimes even catastrophic for the whole painting.

After setting up the rough lines a intense process starts by correcting the small imperfections. Each color gets several layers of acrylic paint before the artwork is finished.

Painting 'Blood Lines' is yours for € 299 / $ 318 *

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Eight fresh new Mr. Upside artworks - Artwork 1 of 8: 'King Candy'

The advantage of moving into a new studio is that during the packing of the artworks you discover all kinds of beautiful art that just need a little bit of attention to be finished.

Those paintings will come online soon. The discovery of those old works triggered me to look for other artworks that are finished but somehow where not admitted to the webshop. I found eight of them and just put them online!

But a product page of an artwork is not the ideal location for an extensive description of the background of those artworks. So, for your convenience I collected those descriptions in eight different blog articles, one for each artwork.

This is the first blog article, with some background info on painting 'King Candy'.

1. Painting 'King Candy'

Painting 'King Candy' is one of the more earlier artworks (approx. 2015) that was left unfinished to pursue other projects. It fits perfectly within the Mr. Upside artists vision: colorful, improvised, detailed and fun.

It depicts a more urban / city scene and has several elements that occur on many artworks by Mr. Upside, such as bird house and Converse sneakers.

It was set up without preliminairy sketches and the initial lines where drawn with the higher speed of doodling. After the first step in which black lines are quickly placed on the canvas, the various shapes that emerge are then filled with colors. When each shape has received some color, each black line receives a second layer of paint. This is a similar process with grafitti.

To prevent the process from slowing down, Posca acrylic paint markers are used instead of brushes and regular acrylic paint.

Painting 'King Candy' is yours for € 299 / $ 318 *

* The price in dollars is calculated on the exchange rates at the time of writing this blogpost. Shipping costs depend on the shipping method and delivery address.

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Moved into my new studio in Leidschendam

Although I received the keys to my new studio earlier, I moved my canvases, paint and other stuff today. And as with many of my projects, I properly underestimated the amount of work involved.

A week earlier I had made a fair deal with Jeroen, one of my 'neighbours' in the old building, to help me move four large pieces of furniture while I helped him out moving his stuff.

So how hard could it be? All the heavy stuff had been moved already.

Easy

Confident this would be a piece of cake, I envisioned a nice early start at 09.00h. After which it would take just 'a few' hours around my old studio to load 'a few' canvases, a bit of paint, two office chairs and some random other stuff in the chartered van. Then it would take four kilometers, a five minute drive, and two hours tops to unload all the stuff into my new creative sanctuary. I even would have an hour or two in the late afternoon to do some work. Easy!

It turned out a little bit different.

Stairs and large paintings

First, the paintings. Apparently I had been a bit more productive in the past three years than I remembered. Second, quite a few paintings did have a size that seriously limited the possibility of handling more than one painting at a time. And third, I severly underestimated the amount of doors and stairs in the new building I had to conquer to get to my new studio.

Satisfied

When I finished it was diner time. My legs felt I had run the New York Marathon after a night out with a few drinks too many. But I was satisfied. The old studio was emtpy. My new studio a chaos. But with all the stuff on the right location, I locked the door. Tired but satisfied.

Another upside

One other advantage of moving stuff is the re-discovery of some old stuff you forget you had. Sometimes it's a trip down memory lane. Sometimes it brings extra inspiration. The latter is the case with the artworks shown below. Most of them are unfinished but I still see why I choose to make them and why I should be making more, :)

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Artwork 'Don't talk. Listen' has found a new home. Within a week!

On March 12 I finished this piece ‘Don’t talk. Listen.’ and wrote about it in this blogpost. It’s called ‘Don’t talk. Listen’ because I find it sad to see so many people talking about themselves without ever asking their conversational partner anything.

Turning a negative into something positive

Without wanting to seem bitter; wouldn't it be nice if people would talk less and listen more? The painting is one of the more recent artworks that is inspired by something that really bothered me. A negative thought and feeling. While I always keep reminding myself to think positive, this was something that frustrated me. But I am very happy to have been able to turn this frustration into something nice.

Don't think twice

The illustration is made with Posca acrylic paint markers on heavy paper. The use of paper as a medium is an experiment. As an artist you want as many people as possible to enjoy your work. But with higher prices, up to € 999,- for the larger paintings, I can imagine people to think twice about purchasing my art.

This ‘experiment' needs more time to finish but... this one already sold! Today. I am excited. Within four days it already sold!

Resemblance

This lovely elderly couple walked past the gallery this afternoon, looked through the window and decided to have a look at this fresh new artwork. After having a small conversation, they bought the piece. If you happen to see any slight resemblance of the couple with me, that's correct. They are my parents, :) And although I offered a special VIP-discount, they even insisted in paying the listed price. I love this kind of customers!

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Good bye old studio and hello new studio!

The Mr. Upside studio is moving! Due to the planned demolition of the old building 'De Verlichting' in The Hague and the construction of garages, Mr. Upside has to move the paints, canvases and brushes to former office building Sector V in Leidschendam.

Too bad. The high ceilings, the natural light through the large windows and a unique, relaxed atmosphere were awesome. 'De Verlichting' offered startups and smaller companies nice units in various buildings which together felt like a small campus.

Sector V. Leidschendam

The new location, called 'Sector V' is also a former office but much larger. My estimation would be that it is build in the mid 70's. And those years didn't end up in the history books as the most creative years architectural wise. The smaller windows, low ceilings and the larger number of units, giving it a distinctly different look and feel.

 

Alternative location

The organisation behind these renovated offices, Conceptors, was also very surprised when the city of The Hague announced the plans for the necessary decontamination of the soil under 'De Verlichting'. Fortunately they where able to find a good alternative in the form of Sector V.

Ofcourse it is the tenants who make a certain vibe in a building. That's why I am confident that eventually it will all turn out fine.

You are invited

Come get a look at the new studio! I have plans for a permanent Open Studio Day every week. Probably Wednesday. But ofcourse you are always welcome. Call, email or send a Whatsapp message and I'll get the coffee or tea ready!

New address

Mr. Upside Art
Sector V Building - Vlietweg 15
2266 KA Leidschendam

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'Don't talk. Listen' - New artwork available!

Why do so many people just talk about themselves all the time? Why don't they show any interest in their conversational partner? Those questions are the main inspiration for this new colorful illustration called 'Don't talk. Listen'.

Shut up and listen

Years ago it occured to me that so many people are never sincerely interested in their conversational partners. They talk and talk and talk. Always about themselves. Telling their story. Never properly responding to what the other person is telling.

Now, when I am a proud dad of two small kids, the examples are still everywhere. Every mom talks about how their kids are doing. How their day is. People start their conversations with the mandatory 'How are you' but instead of really listening to the answer, they can't wait to tell their story. Once you start telling yours, their eyes get out of focus and you see their minds wandering off. Thinking of the next bit of information about themselves they can inject into the 'conversation'.

Headphones and megaphones

I turned this strange, somewhat anti-social behaviour into this painting. It is an illustration, drawn with Posca paint markers on very heavy paper. It depicts two human characters. I made them both looking to the left, backwards, against the reading direction. As way of telling the viewer that this is not a positive situation.

The left character has headphones on. A symbol that occurs often in my work. With headphones you don't have to listen to the world, you can shut everyone out. To emphasize this, I positioned the headphones plug in the mouth, indicating that this persons only listens to themselves.

The dark purple shape represents a megaphone. He shouts so loud, he can't listen to what other people are saying. The right character represents everyone else. Talking but not getting trough. It also has some kind of lamp on top of his head. This represents the attention it is graving.

Figurative style

The style I choose for this illustration is similar to the one of 'Icecream Jedi' and it fits within an experiment where I am exploring a more figurative style as opposed to the Bold Lines collection. The specifications (Posca paint marker on heavy paper, 70cm x 50cm) are also the same, providing artworks within a lower price range.

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Marks & Spencer Flip Flops customized with Mr. Upside Bold Lines

Started as a funny side project these customized Flip Flops became one the projects that doesn't seem to get finished. The left one was finished almost two years ago but instead of throwing them away I kept them but did not start painting the right one.

Untill recently. Frustrated by my tendency to quickly and passionately start projects that take forever to finisch them, I picked up the right one and started painting. The Flip Flops are made of material that is designed to absorb sweat and dirt from your feet and therefor also absorbs paint very well. That means layers. Lots of layers. Each line has been drawn at least three times before it gets white enough. And the perfectionist part of me still doesn't like the lines where the green background still shines through.

Flip flops as an art object

I like the idea of a cross-over between art and every day objects. That's why I like to customise regular objects. They are transformed into something new. Something special and unique.

Please check out more picures and specificaties of the customized Flip Flops on their product page.

Zen monk

It's fun. And doing these zen monk style activities keeps me mentally sane. My mind wanders off and cleans up all kinds of emotions and frustrations while 'painting' with the Posca paint markers.

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Mr. Upside designs unique, special edition staircase

Robert de Kuijper, owner and founder of Stairz, contacted Mr. Upside lately with an unusual request. This involved making a unique design for stairs that will be used on a large convention starting soon.

Stairz is a Dutch company specializing in the renovation of stairs. The company will have a large, 645ft2 (60m2) booth on the Huishoudbeurs, one of the largest life style conventions in The Netherlands. In the centre of this booth, demonstration stairs will need to grab the attention of the 250.000 visitors. Mr. Upside came up with a striking design.

Stairz

The stairs are one the most used areas of your home. Every day the same spot on stairs bear a heavy load, with wear and tear as a result. Stairz Renovation came up with a specially designed step covers. Stairz have been specializing in stair renovation for 12 years now and they have become one the Dutch market leaders in stair renovation.

Huishoudbeurs 2017

This is what the Amsterdam RAI, the convention centre that hosts the event, says about the Huishoudbeurs:

The Huishoudbeurs is one of the largest annual life style events in the Netherlands. This fun event ensures a day of fabulous shopping while enjoying and testing products from more than 370 exhibitors. Make the most of the many bargains and deals, participate in creative workshops, watch fashion shows and see top performances and surprising acts at Festival Fantastique. It's all in a great day out!

Mr. Upside Bold Lines

Mr. Upside used the Bold Lines collection of artworks as a starting point for designing the illustration on the risers of the staircase. The graphical patterns in this collection reflect the optimistic view of Mr. Upside. They also offer a look inside new, creative worlds with special characters and symbols. Those patterns and symbols tell stories. Stories without much rules or laws and each story is different each time you look at it. Together they form a visual language with one common message: positivity.

Above five of ten designs that where presented to Stairz as a possible design for the demonstration staircase.

Above: A staff member of Ilioreclame, an advertising company specializing in window and car signage in Lisse, The Netherlands working on one the eight risers of the demonstration staircase.

Above: the final demonstration stairs in the Stairz warehouse (left picture) and the stairs in the booth on the Huishoudbeurs 2017.

Above: the Stairz Stairs Renovation Booth on the Huishoudbeurs 2017 in the RAI in Amsterdam. In the middle of the booth you can see the demonstration staircase with the Mr. Upside design.

Above: Stairz also specializes in designer sliding doors, under the moniker of Schuiff (Slide in Dutch). This is the back of the Stairz booth.

Above: to promote the Mr. Upside staircase on the Huishoudbeurs 2017 several flyers where printed; a Mr. Upside flyer, a Stairz x Mr. Upside flyer explaining the designs and possibilities, fresh new business cards and a small card to leave your e-mail address.

Will I see you on the Huishoudbeurs 2017?

Come to the Huishoudbeurs 207 from Saturday february 18th till Sunday February 26th! It will be nice to see you and maybe I can help you improve your interior by hanging a unique Mr. Upside artwork, ;)

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Two new Mr. Upside artworks on paper available online

It is still early in the year 2017 and as always this time of year I have loads of ideas and plans. This predictable boost in energy probably has something to do with the psychology behind a fresh new start. One of those plans involves showing two fresh Mr. Upside drawings on MrUpside.com.

More art quickly and at a lower price

The plan is to make my art a bit more quickly and for a lower price. This allows me to test what is better resonating with my audience. And although I wouldn't mind, it is more likely that a smaller artwork with a price around € 100,- would leave my studio or gallery sooner than an artwork of more than € 1200,-.

Art as a gift

January was a nice month for gifts. I was asked to do a nice commissioned piece as a farewell gift to a manager at KPN. And colleagues of another KPN manager, also leaving the same company, bought the fresh new illustration / painting 'Icecream Jedi'. It wasn't even available online yet.

Icecream Jedi

This illustration 'Icecream Jedi' is a colorful illustration on heavy paper featuring a human character eating an icecream. Icecreams are a bit of an art fetisch for me, as they represent the positive side of candy and I associate icecreams with sunny summer days. On a more abstract level icecreams are something you eat. Food. Taken in. Quickly, because otherwise the icecream melts.

Figurative style

The style of the artwork 'Icecream Jedi' is different from the more abstract Bold Lines paintings and an experiment to move towards a more figurative style. A style that is hopefully more appealing to a different audience. Furthermore, the illustration is made with Posca acrylic paint markers. To speed up the process. And to keep the color scheme consistent.

Doodle I

Drawing 'Doodle I' is an illustration in black and white on paper with, as the name already reveals, lots of doodles. It was inspirered by the comments on other Mr. Upside artworks that 'a lot is happening' and 'one can keep looking' at the them and 'seeing different things every time'.

Again, the style of drawing 'Doodle I' is different from the more abstract Bold Lines paintings and an experiment to move towards a style that involves more doodling.

The relatively small size (4.7" x 6.7" / 12 x 17cm) makes it the perfect gift. It is one-of-a kind and fits in every interior. It comes with a plain white frame but can also be bought without.

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New commission 'Keep calm and think of new recipes'

On january 10th I congratulated Peter with his birthday by sending him a quick message with my phone and thanking him for the art projects he commissioned in 2015 en 2016. He replied by requesting 'something nice' as a farewell gift for manager Rogier who just had left Dutch communications provider KPN.

It was never my intention to get a new commission but I was honored and excited to make a new artwork for KPN. Especially because Rogier was someone I knew, liked and had been pleasantly working for, for quite some time, as a freelance UX Designer.

Tight deadline

The project had one major challenge. Time. The farewell party was in about two weeks. It meant I had to sacrifice my newly fitness routine and probably a substantial amount of sleep to win some precious time. I really didn't mind. Making art is more important than a lean and mean body, :)

Keep calm and...

Directly after getting the assignment, I sent an e-mail to a few former co-workers of Rogier asking for a character description that could complement my own experiences with Rogier. One of them, Sanne, soon replied with some very usefull tips and that inspired me to the title and text in the illustration 'Keep calm and think of new recipes'. Rogier stays calm and seemingly relaxed and focused in stressfull situations, hence the part 'Keep calm and...'. One thing I didn't know was the passion for cooking Rogier apparently has. But cooking and a kitchen are always very useful metaphores in an image, so I used that part to come up with the second part of the double portrait of Rogier.

Figurative style

Recently I made some illustrations on paper in a different style compared to the Bold Lines style I have been using the last few years. I decided to use that particular, more figurative style as a starting point for my sketches.

Pencil sketches on canvas

One problem I didn't foresee was the transfer of my sketches on paper to the canvas. My sketches where on a 1:1 scale. I used a grid with guidelines to help me with the positioning. But by wanting to do things too quickly, I forgot that pencil strokes on a canvas can't be easily erased. Using an eraser on a canvas, smears the pencil strokes instead of erasing them. Leaving an ugly grey stain on the canvas that needs several layers of white acrylic paint to be covered up. So my pencil sketches on canvas had to be right the first time. Luckily I knew the drawing very well as I had practiced it many times in the past days.

Posca paint markers

Due to the short and tight deadline, I decided to use Posca paint markers. They make it possible to speed up the paint process and have a consistent color scheme. And I needed that consistency to save more time by using a limited color scheme of four colors.

Working at night

Because of other responsiblities and my current projects as a freelance UX Designer, I had to do a large part of the work starting after 21.00h. But I like the atmosphere of the night. It's quiet outside. There are no distractions in the form of phone calls or e-mails and with some energizing music in the background, I managed to stay awake and not making any major errors untill approximately 02.30h. This proved a great way to finish a project with such a tight deadline.

Finished artwork

Like to see the final result? Check out the 'Keep calm and think of new recipes'-artwork in the section with commissioned artworks.

If you like to stay up-to-date with new artworks and developments, please check and follow me on Instagram.

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Featured in the Dutch Artists Yearbook 2017

Although I didn't had the honor of being asked to participate (I believe none of the artists had) I still am proud to have my application accepted by the review committee.

Something to offer as an artist

As you might know, as a self-taught artist I didn't receive any relevant academic training and currently I have not been professionally involved with art for over 5 years. Those two conditions would have got me a publication right away. But the acceptation made me even stronger in my belief I have something to offer as an artist.

Mr. Upside on Instagram

If you would like to see more images on 'work-in-progress--projects and art, please check out my Instagram account on www.instagram.com/mrupsideart

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Interior update Mr. Upside gallery with some underlayment

Today the long awaited furniture elements arrived in the Mr. Upside gallery! Two cabinets, two presentation blocks and a textiles rack are all made of underlayment. This untreated wood give the fairly large home office / gallery not only a more natural feel but the two cabinets also function as room dividers.

The room dividers are part of our plans to change the function of our 80m2 home office. The two cabinets are based on wheels so they can be easily pushed to any position in the room. They also provide massive storage space for all kinds of stuff you don't want to show the people walking by.

Textile studio and popup gallery

The room previously functioned as a too large home office and sometimes as a bicylce storage, pop-up gallery and also as an extension to our garden shed. Now the cabinets nicely divide the room in a small gallery and the textile studio Janette needs to make her products.

&hout furniture craftsman

The furniture was made by Dutch, Rotterdam based furniture maker and interior designer Lennard Eijkman of &Hout. "To keep my work interesting and to keep developing myself, I mainly focus on businesses and entrepeneurs with original and fresh ideas' Lennard described on his website.

Interior design

After a small brainstorm session on the future plans of the room, Janette immediately took the role of project manager and art director of this interior project. Because of my unlimited confidence in Janette, my own busy schedule and the fact that Janette is passionate about interior and product design, I did not have any contact with Lennard untill today. But as he walked through the door this afternoon I met a very relaxed, experienced and well mannered artisan and craftsman.

Attention to detail

The furniture pieces are all very well build, with attention to detail and solid. We are extremely happy to have the ability to have commisioned such a project. And get the unique furniture delivered, ofcourse, :)

Mr. Upside on Instagram

If you would like to see more images on 'work-in-progress--projects and art, please check out my Instagram account on www.instagram.com/mrupsideart

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Two new paintings added to the Mr. Upside Bold Lines Collection

Although time was limited due to a full schedule the past two months I managed to finish two large paintings! They had been 'sleeping' in my studio for almost a year.

First I planned to have the paintings finished before a new upcoming exhibition in Gent, Belgium at The Holliday Inn Hotel there. But later on I realised the sizes of the paintings exceed the available space there. So I'll keep them in the Mr. Upside Gallery in Voorburg, The Netherlands. 

Artwork 'Working Day'

One painting (shown above) was inspired by a working day at a office. I choose its name 'Working Day' because of the dense, more 'connected' part in the bottom left part and the parts that depict more human elements.

The painting is not as colorful as previous ones because I investigated a more timid, less 'excitement'-style. One advantage of using a more toned-down color scheme is that it fits more easily in different interiors.

More information on artwork 'Working Day' can be found here.

Artwork 'Bits and pieces'

The second painting took a while to get its current balance, both in color and shape. The first setup was extremely rough and I felt the need to take the time to correct the spaces between the lines and the thickness of the lines themselves.

Although I still haven't found the ultimate balance and my newest works contain longer, more structured lines, I am quite happy with how this painting worked out. Just like the painting in the upper part of this blogpost, I used a more toned-down, earthly color scheme.

More information on the 'Bits and pieces' artwork.

Mr. Upside on Instagram

If you would like to see more images on 'work-in-progress--projects and art, please check out my Instagram account on www.instagram.com/mrupsideart

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Custom painted skateboard deck added to the art objects collection

I have always been fascinated by the skateboard culture. However, my child hood consisted of many hours on my bike, doing cycling games in my neighbourhood trying to be the fastest. But later on I discovered the video's and magazines with skateboarders doing awesome tricks on a half pipe and cruising through the city.

Although I have never owned a skateboard myself, let alone set a foot on one, the fascination with the laid back, fun-loving lifestyle somehow never left. Therefor I have always wanted to do 'something' with a skateboard deck.

Skateboard deck 'Tilt shift'

Actually because of a rough sketch and a new yellow layer of paint on a white layer, the idea of a 'shifted' illustration came to mind. The Bold Lines on this custom painted deck seem to be way off at the bottom but as they move to the top of the skateboard, the two different layers get more aligned.

This reminded me of a learning curve. In the beginning of each new 'trick' you are trying to learn you are not aligned with your vision of what you're trying to master. But slowely, as you progress and learn, your vision and actions are getting more and more aligned. In the end, after lots of practice, your actions produce the results you have in your head (or heart). Vision and actions are aligned.

More information on this custom painted skateboard deck and other art objects can be found in the website section with the artworks.

Mr. Upside on Instagram

If you would like to see more images on 'work-in-progress--projects and art, please check out my Instagram account on www.instagram.com/mrupsideart

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Mr. Upside European Tour Part 2 - at the Hilton Orly Airport Hotel Paris, France

As part of a European tour eight Mr. Upside paintings are now on view in the Hilton Orly Airport Hotel in Paris. The timing couldn't be better with a lot of hotel bookings because of the European Championship Soccer 2016 currently taking place in Paris.

The European tour leads past a variety of European high quality hotels, mostly Hilton. The tour is a collaboration with Bubble Projects, a Dutch company dedicated to promoting art of more than 400 artists in Europe.

Mr. Upside Art in Stockholm

Also check out this blogpost on the exhibition in Stockholm, Sweden in the Hilton Slussen Hotel. See more exhibitions of Mr. Upside art on the Exhibitions page.

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Painted wooden cell phone holders - give-away art object commissioned by KPN

'Something with blocks'. That was, in short, the very first briefing of this project I received during a phone call. It also was the fourth art project commisioned by KPN Online Sales Director Peter Sonke.

Give-away art

The KPN Online Sales Team Day 2016 would took place at Thursday, May 26. On that day, Peter wanted to thank all team members and give them something unique. 'Something with blocks’. 'Or circles’.

At least the give-away needed to have a Mr.Upside touch. It also needed to have something to do with mobile phones, Internet and phone. Because selling those products through the KPN webshop is the responsibility of the 40+ team members of the KPN Online Sales department.

Stacking blocks

A few hours after I received the call from Peter, Janette and I started brainstorming. We came to the conclusion that, given the project boundaries, a holder for your cell phone would be a appropriate gift. Although a phone holder itself is not very special nor creative, the blocks can be stacked. And ‘building blocks’ are an excellent metaphor for ‘team’, ‘cooperation’ and 'building’. Also, the blocks together can form a small wall which can be painted on one side. This makes the wall not only a work of art, each block itself holds a unique miniature painting.

Wooden blocks with milled slot for cell phone ready for masking tape - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Testing the painting on the wooden blocks - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Impermanence as conceptual element

After handing out the blocks they would never be together to form the larger painting. That brought impermanence as an unexpected but welcome extra conceptual element. In addition, the blocks would be an artwork and utensil at the same time. And bare wood gives it a durable feel. One of the ideas during the brainstorm session was adding a phone charger. Eventually we dismissed this, as team members will use a wide variety of phone brand and models.

Carpenter

Working wood is not part of my skill set so we turned to carpenter Marc Kupers. Outsourcing the technical part of the artwork was a logical choice. Choosing Marc Kupers followed a friendly and successful cooperation with Marc that goes back years. He was happy to accept the challenge to cut to size, milling the slot and sand the blocks, with the exact dimensions and finish. The latter was extremely important. It ensured that the blocks could fit together. A few millimeters difference would be clearly visible and unwanted.

Applying the masking tape on the wooden blocks - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

First lines with acrylic paint and brush on the wooden blocks - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

High density image

After completing the technical part, I was able to start the artistic part. The 50 small blocks together make up a larger painting but each separate block would also have to be an interesting object by itself. Therefor an image with high density and detail was needed. The spacing and stroke width of Mr. Upside Bold Lines can easily be adjusted to ensure this high density result.

Figurative vs. abstract

The Mr. Upside Bold Lines are mostly abstract. But if the painting would contain at least some recognizable figurative elements, this was preferred. Recognizable elements in the artwork reduce the distance between the art and the viewer. Which makes the art easier to digest.

Color scheme

Setting the color scheme was much more difficult than deciding on the form. The colors had to blend in with any decor, business and private. And aligning the color palette with the corporate identity colors of KPN was far too obvious. One part of the solution was using design software. This provided the possible testing of many different color combinations within a very short time.

This was nice, as I needed to keep in mind that the color choice had tremendous impact on the planning and schedule. For a white line on a dark background to really get crispy white, it takes a lot of layers of paint and thus time. Some parts consist of up to 6 layers of paint. Moreover, there was no time for days of experimenting with real paint layers. To help the lines tell a clear story, I chose to use a contrasting blue line. This line adds something to the message of the painting and makes it a more attractive image.

Writing the characters 'KPN' with acrylic paint and brush on the wooden blocks - Photo 2 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

First lines with acrylic paint and brush on the wooden blocks - Photo 3 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

First lines with acrylic paint and brush on the wooden blocks - Photo 4 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Work in Progress on the wooden blocks - almost done - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Working late in the studio with broken lights - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Night owl

Because of other responsibilities and a lot of Dutch public holidays, the deadline was approaching fast. Working evenings and nights got inevitable. And, for some unknown reason the lights in my studio didn’t work. But the lights in the hall of the building did. So, at one point I found myself in the middle of the night, painting the blocks on the floor of the corridor of the building. The dimmed light, empty building and the gloomy music through the speakers made it al very unreal.

Finished the line work of the painting - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Finished the line work of the painting - Photo 2 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Finished the first layer of the lines on the painting - Photo 3 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Adding a new layer of paint to the lines of the painting - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Moved the painted blocks to our home office to finish the coloring - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Moved the painted blocks to our home office to finish the coloring - Photo 2 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Grateful

Ultimately, all the work resulted in a unique art object. I'd like to express my gratitude towards Peter Sonke as he commissioned this artwork. I also would like to thank Marc Kupers for his dedication and precision in the manufacturing of the wooden blocks.

Other commissioned artworks

Like to know the in other works commissioned by KPN? Check the following blogposts:

1. Painting 'Eco-system'
2. Painting 'Alexander the Great'
3. Digital illustration 'Under water'

Close up of the colored lines of the painting - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Removing the masking tape on the wooden painted blocks - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Applying the high gloss varnish on the painted wooden blocks - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Applying the high gloss varnish on the painted wooden blocks - Photo 2 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Mr. Upside Gallery Photoshoot of the painted wooden blocks - full wall of blocks - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Mr. Upside Gallery Photoshoot of the painted wooden blocks - full wall of blocks - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Mr. Upside Gallery Photoshoot of the painted wooden blocks - close up - Photo 3 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Separate wooden block with cell phone in slot - Mr. Upside Gallery Voorburg - Photo 1 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Separate wooden block with cell phone in slot - Mr. Upside Gallery Voorburg - Photo 2 - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Complete wall of wooden blocks with Separate wooden block with cell phone in slot - Mr. Upside Gallery Voorburg - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Complete wall of wooden blocks with Separate wooden block with cell phone in slot - Mr. Upside Gallery Voorburg - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

Complete wall of wooden blocks with Separate wooden block- Mr. Upside Gallery Voorburg - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting KPN Teamdag 2016 give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

The handing out of the wooden blocks on the KPN Online Sales Teamdag 2016 by Peter Sonke - Artwork Dutch contemporary artist Mr. Upside Michiel Nagtegaal painting give-away gift kunst cadeau in Mr. Upside Studio

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