I Was Wondering the Same Thing

Shortly after figuring out where most things are in Amsterdam in relation to everything else (and how to get “home”) I found the Spui (pronounced spow—rhymes with how now brown cow.) The Spui is cool. It’s a plein—a square, a pedestrian courtyard. That’s where I first saw the American Book Center (a bookstore with Amsterdam’s largest collection written in English). I say that’s where I first “saw” the American Book Center because I see loads of stuff but finding anything the second time is the trick. Anywho, I surely found the ABC and the Spui again and many other times, including one day when I learned that on Sundays the Spui features an art market. I’ve been back many times, mostly trying to talk myself into buying something.

See, these are serious artists and their art is by no means cheap. As a friend of my wife likes to say, “They like their stuff!” That said, on several occasions I returned to the Spui to see the art—especially that of Gerard Carbo (pictured below).

Carbo paints plein air, meaning outdoors in view of his subjects. In his art, you see what he saw. I absolutely love his work. He tends to use multiple canvases—you know, he paints an extended scene by placing two or more canvases side-by-side and creating a panorama. His art is what I sometimes think my paintings should be. For as much as I want one and for as much as I tried, I never did pull the trigger.

Then, get this…last week my colleagues informed me that as a “team” we were going to lunch at a local restaurant. I went. Why not? For as clever as I pretend to be, I didn’t see it coming; the lunch was held in my honor, if you will. I was really surprised when they presented me with a gift. (You followin’ me here?)

I started to unwrap it, and I knew right away it was a canvas—actually two, back-to-back. My first thought was of my artist buddy, Sonya, but as soon as I saw the images, I knew. “Did you buy these on the Spui?” I asked. They asked me how I knew.

I was wondering the same thing about them.

left panel

right panel