Polder Posts

Every Dutchman knows this scene in every polder: pollard willows along the road. These ones are on the other side of the dike on which we live. They are somewhat lower on the dike so you look down on them from above. Previously, when this dike still had a flood defence function, it was metres higher. So then you would look down on the willows even more. I also like them in spring and summer, when they are full of leaves; but in winter, when the willows have just been pollarded, I think they are at their best. Then they become sturdy, almost human, shapes, like some kind of guardians of the polder….

Here you can see how this painting was created in many short strokes: