Zoet Zuur

Inbetween Publishers, 2005

Looking at Johan's work requires a lot of effort. You can never quite grasp it. Not only because of the quantity, also because of the content. Over a period of many years, I have often seen his drawings and read his poems. Each time they were a complete revelation, each time I saw something new.There is so much in them. A lot of depth, a lot of double meanings, a lot of humour, but above all a lot of pain and sorrow. His drawings have become an iconographic language in themselves. Since 1989, we have made a number of books together. There was OverOog,Recent Works, Book without Ink, Care and Cultivation, 52 x Connected and a volume of work bundled in self-publishing. WithJohan gone, it would be a shame to leave all the work in boxes and folders. So I was delighted when the Clijsters family asked me if I was interested in producing an edition with drawings by Johan. It was a real pleasure to rummage through his oeuvre. It became a well-considered selection that gives a picture of Johan's search for the why. Sweet and sour memories they are.