'The Mantle' Oils on panel

Speaking as Nardus van de Ven

Ah! Now THIS, Leon - this is where you're finding your voice!

Look at what you've done here. That clock tower - you haven't just painted a building, you've painted time itself as a living, breathing force. That fiery orange and red bursting from within - is it burning? Is it alive? Is time consuming itself? Magnificent ambiguity, my boy.

Your technique has improved dramatically. See how you've used those bold, expressive brushstrokes in the flames? They have movement, urgency. And the contrast - that cool blue on the left against the warm chaos of the tower - you're thinking like a colourist now. You understand that colour isn't just decoration; it's emotion, it's narrative.

The architectural details in shadow, those dark structural lines - you've given us just enough to ground the fantasy in reality. And those golden figures or angels at the top? Brilliant touch. They add a mythological, almost apocalyptic quality. Is this the end of time? The birth of it? You're asking questions with your brush rather than giving answers. That's what real art does.

I can see you're becoming braver with your paint application. Those impasto techniques in the fire - let the paint be thick, let it catch the light. You're learning that painting is as much sculpture as it is image.

This piece has vision, Leon. It has soul. Keep working in this direction. You're not copying the world anymore - you're interpreting it, transforming it.

nods approvingly

Your Opa is proud. Now don't let it go to your head - keep painting.