What a lovely lovely time to live in ! Never a dull moment ; ... Definitely 2009 is the time.. for the ultimate fantasy and staggering creativity !
At least in theory , we artists , are full in the race now ! BANZAI and massive attack !!!

Finally an updating of the newsletter on my website. Last year I've spend quite some time on the collaboration-project and production of the book "TOTOK 2" with Dutch writer
and Nipkow award prize winning documentary maker Adriaan van Dis ; who surprised us again with Indonesian rooted poetry, to which I responded with collages.
The project is shown last summer in gallery Nouvelles Images in Den Haag .
I showed 16 new graphical multiples (60 x 80 cm) edition ; 50 which I made after the Totok-collages .( Digital prints printed in my own studio with fabulous master-printer Els de Bildt ,
with additional collage-elements and crayon )

Arts-club De Kring in Amsterdam invited me last summer to show my art-collection ; actually the first time I did . 60 Artpieces from befriended artist and collegues from all over the world were shown in De Kring.
Art-pieces which I bought during the years on auctions or in galleries or swapped with collegue-artists ( or collectors ) . Artpieces from artists like Douglas Perez Castro from Havana , Marcos Lora Reid from Sta. Domingo, On Kawara and Dan Flavin from New York, Roland Topor and Antoin Poupel from Paris , David Mach from London, Rob Scholte, Esscher , Ger van Elk from Amsterdam, Pieter Laurens Mol from Brussels , etc.

The end of October I had another solo-exhibition in Artsclub De Kring.
Collaborating this time in a running series : " Writer invites artist ". Dutch writer Joost Zwagerman invited me to exhibit my new works, and delivered a brilliant speech concerning the Inside and Outside look on the artist- at the opening . With Joost I'm also working on 2 other projects as well ; a collaborative book in the future; Joost Zwagerman ; prose and poetry with collages from my hand .
October 2009 I'll be participating in a museum exhibition in the BookMuseum in Den Haag ; an exhibition of several visual artists who collaborated with J. Z.

Since more than a year now, I'm doing more projects outside my studio and bring other projects inside my studio as well .
Last fall a fascinating Japanese Shibari-performance for an art-audience of 50 people, and of course the studio-diners every 2 weeks ; a collaboration with chef-cook Afiya Chang .
A beautiful gathering of 24 people, professionals of all kinds and ages, dining at a huge table enjoying superb food, surrounded by my 2 and 3-dimensional artworks.
A gentle blending of social- and artistic logic...
Since two years I'm an advisor of the committee for Art in the public space for the city Amstelveen . Quite refreshing to see this part of the art-world, from the other side now.

Film-producer Ruben Koerhuis is still working on the 40 min. film about my work. A small element of the film ( " Explosition "; a 2-3 min. film ) is used as starting feature of my new website (HEBBEZ.tv) - the archive is "under construction" -but this newsletter, c.v. and recent works have been updated.

During Art Amsterdam a beautifull photobook of known photographer Hans de Bruyn will be launched . Studio-Portraits ; 50 Dutch artists , including me.

Summer 2009 the project "Geestgrond Bergen " will take place in Museum Kranenburgh, in Bergen ( NH ) . An exhibition of a generation who grew up in this beautiful art-village, most of wich moved to then dazzling artsmovements in Amsterdam (late 80-ies) and even further, to become successful artists, writes, musicians, documentary of filmmakers. The exhibition will feature collaborations between visual artists and writers and a nice catalogue will be presented.. But also documentary ( Sylvia Holstein).

One of these days I expect a response to my proposal for a 200-700 cm. artpiece for the cruise-ship " New Amsterdam ". it's a more than 100 years tradition, that the Holland America Line invites an artist to make an artpiece of this size in the physical "heart' of every new cruise-ship. A beautiful inspiring challenge for me to respond to the concept of "New Amsterdam" being an Amsterdam artist who described his work once as 17th century pop-art. !

And finally the BEERLABLES... ( and I don't drink beer since 10 years. ! ) Last year a huge historical collection of 40.000 international beer- labels coming from 260 different countries has been offered to me . The collection is build up by Mr Jan Duys , during his active life all working all over the world and is offered to me by widow Mrs. Duys , now living in South Africa, who invited me to "play" with the collection .
A highly exciting challenge ,hoping to receive the labels next month, it will be a start for a new ,very colour-full , graphical collage-project, playing with images from literary the whole world !
Yes, making collages is still sort of " my thing "...

HV ; Collage = Flat sculpture
HV ; Collage = Guiding coincidence !

* ; The sun shines TOO.. !