The Unfamiliar Familiar
My work explores the space between the familiar and the unreal. Animals dressed as nobles. Objects that can’t exist. Scenes that feel like memories, but aren’t.Inspired by the idea of "Entfremdung" - estrangement - I create images that appear clear but stay unresolved. Each piece invites the viewer to pause, imagine, and wonder what might be missing, or what has been forgotten.
Inspired by Escher, Built by Hand
A Study in Impossible Balance
Inspired by the work of graphic artist M.C. Escher, this image began as a carefully constructed cardboard model, photographed using an analogue film camera. The developed film was scanned and digitally refined, with final enhancements created using Midjourney AI. This piece is the result of the interplay between physical craftsmanship and digital innovation.
Logic falters where wonder begins.
The Conversation
Echoing Rodin’s The Thinker, this aging chimp appears lost in deep thought—but unlike the solitary sculpture, he’s not alone. A small owl offers silent counsel, shifting the scene from introspection to quiet collaboration. Like my Impossible Shapes and Ruffs and Whiskers series, this piece plays with estrangement: familiar forms placed just outside the expected, inviting a second look—and a different question.
Portraits of Pretend Nobility
Ruffs and Whiskers
This series explores the quiet absurdity of dressing animals in ornate Renaissance-style ruff collars—an accessory once reserved for human wealth and status. Several portraits began as original photographs, shot on film or digital, then digitized and finalized using DALL·E. The result is a collection that feels both elegant and slightly surreal. Why does it look unnatural for an animal to wear something so refined, while on humans it once signified perfection, power, and taste? And if that contrast makes us smile—or feel uneasy—why is that?
What Can’t Be, Yet Is
Impossible Presence
This image sets the tone for the Impossible Shapes series—a world where the unreal is treated as fact. A golden Penrose object, quietly on display in an antique shop window, suggests it has always existed—catalogued, appraised, and made collectible. The scene blends historical realism with visual paradox, inviting the viewer to suspend logic and accept the impossible as ordinary. Like the rest of the series, it plays with perception, memory, and the subtle estrangement that comes when the familiar no longer follows the rules.
But why all the stairs?
About & Looking Forward
I’m the creator of EremusArt.com. After years working in the legal profession in the Netherlands, I now spend most of my time in the South American tropics, where I’ve returned to a long-held passion for visual art. Under the alias “Eremus”- a quiet nod to my roots - I blend photography, graphic design, and AI tools to create evocative, surreal works. What began with pen and paper has grown into a focused artistic journey and a meditative counterbalance to my former life.This portfolio is a dynamic collection, with more work to come. I’m exploring new directions, refining old ideas, and considering offering selected prints in the future. If you’ve enjoyed the work or have questions, feel free to reach out—my contact details are listed below. Thanks for visiting.
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