Robert Volkerts

Tattoos.

Shunned by society, loved by many of this generation, and I’m sure they will be loved even more by generations to come.

I personally think that tattoos are one of the most wonderful artforms out there. Yes, I said it. It’s an artform, and it’s beautiful.

To me, it’s like my body is my diary. I capture essences of phases I go through. I interpret, and put them down. They reflect everything from the places I’ve been, things I’ve seen, feelings I felt, songs I loved. All of it.

Sometimes they are an encouragement. A boost. They make things easier.

I feel that tattoos should be adopted by the general public. They have been around since before society, and they will outlive society. I’m sure.

They are symbolic and they bring us one step closer to individualization.

Some people are afraid of them, because they fear that they will wake up one day and regret their ink.

That is nonsense. It’s a decision you made at one point in your life, and it has left a physical mark on you. How does that differ from other decisions you once made?

Some people make decisions that end their lives. Others make some that change their lives forever. Decisions are very powerful, and they often have repercussions that cannot be undone. How is this different from a tattoo?

At least with tattoos you have a bit more control over your decisions. You get to make what you want of it. No regrets, just reminders.

There is no sense in regret, regret in and of itself has no value, no weight, no time. It does not exist, yet it is something so many people experience. Believe it or not, regret is a state of mind. Never regret, because every step you ever took, was towards making you who you are now. Why regret that?

People not being hired because of tattoos? I think that is ridiculous. There is one exception, if the tattoo offends people, say you have a swastika, or a foul word, or a violent image, that may turn people off and offend others. I have no trouble at all with people putting these tattoos on their body, I mean it’s all about expression. So they can go ahead and do so, but when they are denied work because of it, they must be prepared to accept this.

If your tattoo does not offend, if it’s animals, and flowers, and beautiful things, all it can do it flatter your business in my opinion. People will ask about it, ask to see it, and people will connect with your employees on a personal level, easier. It’s a topic of conversation, and people love to see beautiful images, whether it be in a magazine, or on your skin.

Let go of fears, and embrace who you are, and share that with others. They might learn from it.

I myself plan on tattooing most of my body. Everything except my face and privates. I love tattoos, and I love the meaning behind them. I think they add so much to a person. I already have two arms completely full of wonderful, luscious ink, and I plan on getting more next year.

I wrote this article because I feel this little bit had to be said. Drop the taboos. You can come up with a half a million arguments, all of which will be shot down the day you become worm food. When you die, which one of those arguments will hold up? None.

And especially not the one where people go “It’s against God’s will to do that with your body, you won’t go to Heaven when you die.” To those of you who say that, I say this; “How would you know? Have you died, gone to Heaven or Hell, made a documentary about it all, with physical evidence and all, and came back to life to educate the world on your find?” The answer ladies and gentlemen, is a swift and simple “No.”

No one knows what happens when you die or where you go.

What I do know is what happens while you’re alive. And all I know is that I will make damn sure, that as as much of the comings and goings of my mortal life, will be determined by me. I will do what I want, when I want. It is my right. I am alive, much like you, for a little bit. We don’t know how much time we have. Why settle for others wishes and demands? What makes the more than you to decide how you look, what you wear, how you speak, how you walk, how you pray…

Is it because they have heavy pockets? Is it because they are well known, powerful, respected, feared even?

You put a bullet to their heads as easily as you put one through mine. Their shit stinks profusely like mine and yours. They have fears, desires, and they wake up sometimes, thinking they are so absolutely small and insignificant that it will take a hell of a microscope just to acknowledge their existence. Why comply someone who is a bag of shit, piss, meat and bone like you?

There is no reason.

Your life, YOUR life, is reason enough to do whatever it is your heart desires in this life.

Tattoos. Want ‘em? Get ‘em.

Posted at 6:54pm and tagged with: Rambling, one column,.

There are more people listening to Justin Bieber now, than there ever was listening to Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen.

There are more people who have seen “The Fast and the Furious” than “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” or ” Grace is Gone”

And the list goes on…

This is something that I discovered at a very early age. That bland “fast food” art, is more popular and widely accepted than the good stuff. The real stuff.

I remember discovering this, to be honest with you, I don’t remember when, exactly, but I discovered this at some point, when I was very young, maybe 12 or 13 even.

I was discovering lesser known musicians that I was into, and the way it worked was that when I discovered one, it would lead me to one or two other lesser known musicians that were just as absolutely fantastic as the one that brought me to them. I was digging in deep to find the best music I possibly could because what my peers at school were listening to and what the radio played was not amusing me, and was not touching me at all. It was an act of desperation.

And you have to keep in mind that there was no Internet back then, so I had to rely on whatever I could to get to new music.

And the more of these artists I found, the more it occurred to me how they never made it into the mainstream, how no one knows about them, and why I stand alone with my love and appreciation for this music and these artists.

I never really bothered to dwell too much on this discovery, I just regarded it as fact, and that was that, I never pondered why this was.

I remember when we moved to Curacao, and we were struggling financially for quite a while, how my father made a similar discovery in his work.

He was a Master Chef and was used to cook the best of the best. We’re talking about that super fancy cuisine you would see on the food network. The plate with the tiny bit of food on it that was super expensive, super nutritious and considered to be a 5 star meal.

Now in Aruba this was not a problem, my father was the executive chef of the biggest hotel on the island back then, and had 6 restaurants under him. And you can bet you that he got to cook his fancy meals, and he was praised for it. People were willing to pay for such a meal, they loved it.

But here in Curacao, it was different. The culture is different, the mentality is different and this was something he didn’t count on. And as he applied for work here, people continuously told him: “You’re over qualified” and “We can’t pay you what you’re worth”.

And it got to the point where he did what I would do at that point, he said well if no one can afford me, and I’m over qualified. I would do this on my own. And he did, he started his own restaurant on the island, and it bombed.

And I remember finding my dad sitting at the living room table with his head hung low. And if you knew my father you would know that this is a position you would very very seldom find him in. He was always optimistic, and always had a firm grasp on that ever elusive silver lining people talk about. It’s like he had a direct line to all the good in this world. I can count on one hand, the times where I found my father looking so down.

When I inquired as to what was going on, he said something like this;

“I don’t get it, I just don’t get it anymore. I am one of the best chefs in the Caribbean, I cook some of the healthiest meals you’re likely to find in the area, and some of the better tasting as well. In Aruba people couldn’t get enough of my food and expertise. But this, this is different. It’s like the people here, they don’t want to eat healthy, they don’t want to eat right. I see them turn down my meals, so they can save ten bucks and eat a huge plate of greasy Chinese food, or hit up a “Truck di Pan” (Which are vans, parked around the island that serve greasy fast food from say 10 pm sometimes till the sun comes up). They give up quality, and countless health benefits, to save a little money to buy food that will eventually lead to chronic health disorders. I just don’t understand the mentality down here, and I just don’t know where the priorities lie with these folks.”

I sympathized with him, I understood him. And at the time, I did not make the link between my discovery as a child, and the one my father just made.

Now that I have given myself up entirely to art and expression, and trying to make a living off it, I found myself with my head hung low, much like my father was on that day I found him at the living room table.

Since I started this whole photography gig, there have been a great many others who have picked up the camera since then. Both here on the island, as in Aruba. And many of them have also credited me with being their inspiration, and for this I am humbled.

The work we produce are vastly different, me and many of these other photographers. Pictures from one photographer to another can vary as much as one culture to another, or the topography of one land to another. But I dare to say that most of what is out there is Glam photography, which is pretty much what our parents used to love to do in Studios across the island back in the 80’s or so. Fake backgrounds, some lighting, and making people look pretty.

It is not artistic or creative, it is in every sense of the word, a pretty picture, and meant to flatter a person and make them look well….glamorous.

Now I have enjoyed my fare share of success since I started, and of that I am very proud, and humbled once again.

But I found myself with a dilemma.

I notice many of them gaining much popularity. People love them, and I respect that. I find people sending me e-mails telling me how much they love my work. And these people send e-mails to these other photographers saying the same. While our work are vastly different.

It’s much like eating at a vegetarian restaurant, and sending your compliments to the chef, and then going to a Pizza joint ordering a “Meatza” or Meat lovers” and sending the same compliments to that chef. Of course this is possible. I’m not saying it’s not so don’t get your panties in a bunch. I’m just saying that it’s not common. You’re either left or right, black or white. But nowadays people are living in the gray area, which is what dominates. People spread themselves very thin. I mean sure I love Burger King and Mickey D’s. But I don’t finish a meal in Bistro and then hit up Mickey D’s, complimenting both chefs. I’m not saying I’m Bistro, and the rest is fast food, but there is quite the different between the two. Sure they are both food, but the difference is astounding. Catch my drift?….errr..hope so.

Maybe I’m trailing off…let me get back to what I need to say.

I found myself saying to myself: “These guys are better than me, which is why they are more popular, which is why they get plenty of clients, which is why they’re in the public eye”

And this train of thought threw a major wrench in my gears. It really had me down for a while.

After some serious soul searching it hit me. I made the same discovery again, forgetting that I have made it once before. Justin Bieber, everyone loves him. He is everywhere! You cannot turn around to scratch your ass without that ridiculous little chipmunk staring at you from back there. And then I wonder, what is wrong with the world, when artists like Pitbull, Justin Bieber, Rihanna and so forth dominate television and radio, while other musicians, who sing songs with so much substance, who actually play instruments, and know their instruments inside out, who sweat and bleed to get their music out, fall on deaf ears?

When movies like “Fast and the Furious” and “Twilight” are winning awards and making millions, and movies like “Inglorious Basterds” and “Benjamin Button” go almost unnoticed?

And then it hit me, one of the fundamental flaws with people. I’m not even sure what it is, but people simply settle for less. If it’s catchy, and if it’s light, they gobble it up. They don’t want to think, they don’t want to feel, they don’t want to be challenged by art. They want art to be like background music, a light lunch, a passing car. It should be light, and fluffy, and accessible, and stylized. Style over substance any time, any day. And please make it brief. Don’t use big words. And you pronounce mouth, MOUF! Don’t be easy like Sunday morning, be CRUNK! like Friday Night Foo.

I have already discovered that when you’re an artist, you’re biggest enemy is yourself. It is excruciating being an artist. How do you best your last work, how do you move on, how to not fall into apathy, how to be progressive, where to take your work next, how to really express what you feel, and what would people think if you take this into that direction. It’s pretty confusing and irritating.

And I have read many times how artists sell out, how they become comfortable and lazy. And oh how easy it is to do all that.

Ever realized how an artist will release their first album, and it’s brilliant? And the only song or two that don’t sound like the rest of the songs on the album are the hits that make it to the radio? How those are somehow catchier and poppier and deal with much less than the other songs? And how maybe by the second or third album, there are more of those “radio hits” on there than anything with substance?

Well friend, they sold out. They came to the crossroad, and they fumbled the ball.

As an artist you get to that point. You realize that people like the fluffy stuff, keep it light and casual and you’re a rising star and you will sell out concerts, go platinum, and basically make planet Earth your bitch. Can you say Billions of dollars? C’mon say it ten times fast!

Or be progressive, experiment, stay true, keep it meaningful, and chock full of smart, emotional, meaningful content. And always stay small time, sure you’ll have a strong following, but that’s all you’ll have; A following. You will never reach the masses. You’ll become a cult classic and that is that. Always a struggling artist, but true and progressive and raw.

I have come to to that crossroads, and I have chosen.

I will stay true. At the end of the day, it is far more important to me to feel satisfied with the work I do, than have money in my pocket.

I will admit though, that I almost slipped and took the other route. Subconsciously. When work’s pouring in, and the money is flowing, and people want bland stuff, and the bland stuff comes easy to you because it’s so simple, you sort of go with it. I mean why not? It’s easy work, and you always have money in your pocket. But then even with the money in your pocket, and a happy client, and the praise of the general public, you ask yourself, why in the world do I feel so cheap!? I feel used, and cheap! Like a plastic disposable camera…

It’s because I’m selling out, it’s because I’m not doing what I should be doing. It’s because I’m taking the easy road.

So if I am to go down in history as a Justin Bieber or as a Bob Dylan, let it be Bob.

And people, seriously, look beyond what the media and society spoon feed you. Look beyond the MTV, and the top 40’s. Shed that fake fucking skin that you put on so you can fit in and be like everyone else. Find yourself and stand for something. Don’t be bland, don’t be another brick in the wall. Be somebody. Shake things up. Question the foundation that this artificial life is built on, and challenge the system. Shove the man! Because living in the gray area, you will never ever see true colors. That much, I can promise you.

Posted at 12:43pm and tagged with: Rambling, one column,.

The title / moniker “Artist” should not exist. It’s a shame that it does.

This might sound a little crazy, but follow me here.

What is an artist essentially?

Well in my opinion it’s an individual who lives life, and takes up everything, like a sponge, all aesthetics, sounds, emotions, anything and everything. He takes them in, filters them, considers them, and then expresses them in a way, shape or form. The way he expresses them could have something to do with the source material or it could not. All in all, he communicates, honestly, unashamed, straightforward. An artist is considered brave by many people, because he expresses all of himself, whatever it may be, and bares himself to the world. Almost like a martyr in some ways I think.

Well isn’t that what everyone should be doing by nature?

We should all suck up all of life, take it all in, like one big black hole, and then pit all that against our own experiences, opinions, upbringing, fears, dislikes, likes, beliefs, all of what we are, we pit it up against ourselves, and then express our feelings about something, everything, anything. 

It’s not that different from breathing, it comes naturally. It is a reflex.

Art comes naturally for me, expression is as easy as breathing for me. I wouldn’t know how to not express. It seems like a very selfish way of life to me; a very empty life.

Society is setup in a way that people nowadays are very very strange in my opinion. Most everybody has a hidden agenda, something to gain, they harbor secrets, they keep you at arm’s length, they lie, they cheat, they are not opinionated about anything almost, and the opinions they do have, are adopted from those they respect or admire.

Individuals almost do not exist anymore, just copies of copies, until all you have is a very very bad copy of the original where you cannot make anything out on the page. That is the way I view our species in this day and age.

People should be an idea. A concept. They should stand for something and be ready to die for what they stand for, for what they believe in. Be it “good” or “bad”. People are not just people, we have been given intelligence and free will, yet I see moss growing on trees who express more than our species. People stand for nothing anymore. They just exist. Various bags of beef, breathing, fucking, talking, waging war. To what end? To the end. Until we are gone, and we will not be remembered for anything. Sad. Sad. Sad.

We should all be artists. Because all art is, is a form of communication. Much like speech, or body language. In my opinion it’s even a much more efficient and beautiful expressive force than anything else commonly used today, like speech.

We should all be artists. We should all live art.

By coining some people artists and others simply “people” we are actually saying ” Man oh man can that guy / girl express beautifully, she really puts it out there, good for them. Too bad I can’t do that”

Guess what chump, you can. The fact that you don’t has nothing to do with your ability and everything to do with your will power and guts.

Be yourself, show yourself. To do so, we must first face ourselves, and be completely honest about our findings, then embrace them. What you find won’t be all beautiful or wonderful, matter of fact, most of it will be unsettling, and strange. But you know what, you are a meal comprised of many ingredients. Some sweet and some sour. But then again kids? What is our favorite sauce to dip our Mc D’s nuggets in??

That is correct: Sweet & Sour.

It tastes better than any sweet sauce, and a hell of allot better than any sour sauce, it does it in a way only a sweet and sour sauce can.

We are all sweet and sour sauces. Embrace that fact, and be proud of it. Love your sweetness, and embrace your sour. And people will be dipping their nuggets up in you faster than you can say “DamnRobthatsoundedsoWRONG!”

I want to leave you with one last comparison before I round up this philosophical rambling session.

There are a whole many things in this life much like the moniker “Artist” that are an abomination. If you really think about this, you’ll come up with way more. I won’t touch on all of them.

But here’s a strong one for you.

Contracts.

Contracts are the devil’s throbbing member.

What are we saying with contracts?

We are saying “I don’t trust you, because I don’t know you, and so we need evidence of our agreement, just in case you fuck me over, so I can present this in a court of law, and destroy you!” They present it to you with a smile, and you sign it with a smile.

That shouldn’t exist.

There was a time when people had honor, and a man’s word was, well…a man’s word. It was worth MORE than any contract, anyone could ever setup today.

Sure I realize that contracts are necessary. I do. But the reason why they are necessary is what gets me. And that is because people nowadays are completely messed up.

They don’t stand for anything anymore, like I said, they lie, they cheat, hidden agendas, they’re out to getcha! So we need contracts.

But they shouldn’t exist.

We’re supposed to shake hands, give our word, and live up to it, like the good ol’ days.

We’re supposed to breath life in, and breathe “art” out.

Share with eachother. Share, share share.

By creating these “tools” and these “titles” we are dividing our species and creating conflicts and issues left and right, resulting in a broken and divided society.

In closing I would like to quote a scene from a very unexpected source I’m sure.

From the movie Ant Bully, I remember a scene where Zoc, an ant, is talking to Lucas, a human boy who has shrunk to their size and is living among them, as both species learn from eachothers ways.

It goes a little something like this:

Zoc: So this “city” of yours, it’s like a nest?

Lucas: Uhh..kind of…

Zoc: And the humans that live there, are bothers working together for the greatness of their colony?

Lucas: Uhm…not exactly..it’s a little more like… you know..every man for himself.

Zoc: But that’s so primitive, how does anything get done?

Lucas: Some people work together…

Zoc: Some…why not ALL?!

Lucas: I suppose that’s because there are differences..

Zoc: But it’s the differences that make a colony strong; Foragers, scouts, drones, nurses, regurgitators, all are different, but an essential part of the whole! This is where we ants draw our strength.

Lucas: My differences just get me beat up.

Zoc: And why is that?

Lucas: I don’t know, some humans would rather clobber people they don’t understand…

Zoc: Like you like to “clobber” ants.

That scene clearly illustrates a very integral part of what is wrong with our society.

We humans like to think we are better than animals, well if you didn’t know even the “simple” ants have things better figured out than we do, as we can’t get over our petty differences, while they use those differences to gather strength, while we use them to divide us.

We need to start working together as a species. Now.

First step towards successful team work? Communication.

Best form of communication in my opinion? Art.

So let’s all be artists shall we?

We are all one. Act the part.

Quick facts:

The nature of art has been described by Richard Wollheim as “one of the most elusive of the traditional problems of human culture”

Leo Tolstoy identified art as a use of indirect means to communicate from one person to another.

Posted at 4:41pm and tagged with: Rambling, one column,.

If the passage of time has taught me one thing, is that time does not exist.
It’s a shadow of something that might be real, but is probably not.
It’s the imagination working overtime to capture something that cannot be caught.
Time is Moby Dick, swimming the vast oceans, horizon-less, effortless.
And we are but feeble captains with spears in hand, ready to destroy what is beautiful and mysterious.

We find ways to rationalize it;Birthdays, holidays, decades, centuries, big hands, little hands.
It isn’t there. The young are old, and the old couldn’t be any younger. Wrinkles are nothing but tucks and folds harboring memories and experience.
Time is nothing more than a measuring instrument, go figure; meters, miles, kilometers, feet, centimeters, millimeters, pounds, kilograms and then finally, hours, minutes, seconds.

All we really have is right now. This moment. Suspended in the air like a spider from it’s web, patient, graceful, and then it’s gone. Forever. But not really.
But before you realize that it’s gone, before you can sob or mourn, or scoff, or sneer, or sulk. You have a new muse, a new spider, hanging from a different, shiny new web.
Another opportunity, a fresh new start, a clean slate, a lifetime, a playground. You are a child, and this moment is your favorite, shiny new toy.
And so the artist sits down with a fresh lump of clay, and he will mold until his hands are calloused and his imagination parched.

In this moment, you can reinvent, you can redefine, you can relive.
Or sit and wait, as of course, everyone believes that you have to give everything its due time, to sink in, to realize.
Hypocrisy at its best. People say two things all the time. They say “Give it time” and they say “One life to live, live it” some even throw in “why do tomorrow what you can do today” for good measure.
Yet they are stuck in apathy, they wait it out. They don’t love because love needs time to grow, when everything they consist of scream to love, their souls bellow out from the gallows like a bewildered banshee.
“Reach out, love, share!”
“This is amazing, I am alive”
“This is refreshing, water after the drought”
“This is what I’ve been waiting for all my life, the moment that lingers long after I am gone”
“Run with this, this is the best you have ever had”


And then the subtle whisper of rationality drowns it out, a bitter old man wheezing through an oxygen mask, the last sigh of the curmudgeon, a final push, weak and powerless, yet it holds sway over who and what you are.

“This is not love, this is chemical imbalance.”
“This is not love, this is a bad choice”
“This is not love, this is you making a fool of yourself”
“Give it time, give it time, give it time, time will lift the veil and reveal this for what it truly is.”
“Do not give into this, fight it, slay the last unicorn”

This is a very hard thing to do. Letting go of the concept of time entirely, and follow that internal compass we are all equipped with when we leap into existence. Kicking, screaming, full of life.
We must live from the inside out. Not the other way around.

I am blind. I feel my way through life. And through these blind eyes, I could not see more clearly, and I assure you there are no horizons in sight. Boundaries are just as fabled as time is.

And you, 20/20, stare at me through dull eyes. And yet, you have no idea who I am.
Could I possibly be all those things that I appear to be? Could anything really?
And so the boy sits by the pool, dipping his toes in periodically, always telling himself that if he waits long enough, the water will get warmer, and when it’s just right, he will dive in.
Before long, his toes don’t reach the surface of the water. The water evaporates. The pool is empty, all the other boys are gone, much like the water. The boy puts his head in hands and sobs accordingly.
But hey, it’s only been a minute, give it time, you might be able to justify what it is that stirs inside when you see me or anyone / anything else. You might be able to get that perfect temperature if you just wait it out. If you don’t evaporate first.

All we have is time, all we have is endless numbered days.

Posted at 10:11am and tagged with: Rambling, one column,.