Dutch Artist Reveals What’s “Trapped” Inside Popular Cartoon, Fairy Tale And Pop Culture Characters (30 Paintings)

Bored Panda got in touch with Stefan to get to know more about him and his creative process. We got curious about how his journey as an artist started. The artist replied that he's been drawing since he was a kid. Then, at the age of thirteen/fourteen, his brother introduced him to painting graffiti. "Hooked from day one, it was a great way to express and develop myself as a kid. After I finished my education as a house/sign painter and study in graphic design, I ended up at a studio specializing in cinema painting and set design. During the eight years that I worked at that company, I learned a lot of different crafts like sculpting, decoration and painting technics that I later started using for my personal work."

The idea of "Trapped" came to Stefan when he was working as a sculptor and painter for amusement parks like Warner and Disney, "helping them to create a beautiful fake world which in the end isn't that beautiful after all. After a while, I found out it was time to create my own world. The trapped series is a perfect way to show these two worlds together."

"Every work has a story or message. One of the returning subjects in my work is a contradiction. I love to play with the contrast and tension between two opposites and show them in one work."

The artist shared that the first reaction when people see his work for the first time is probably, Hey! That's Mickey! But after a few seconds, they notice something is wrong.

According to Stefan, the time it takes to create one painting depends on the piece. "Small pieces can take a few days while big pieces can take a few weeks. I can't spend months on work. I'll lose my patience and interest after a while. Overall I'm a fast painter. I try to paint as confidently as possible, which results in leaving parts for what they are. It doesn't need to be perfect."

"Talking about work, I'm a blessed guy. It's the only thing I want to do. I love the whole process of coming up with ideas and challenging myself to find a way to do them. One way or another.

Next to all the planned murals and shows, the most interesting project at the moment is that I'm challenging myself to slowly make a transition in my work. I have a lot of new ideas which I'm testing. So I'm doing a lot of research and figuring out ways to execute and present these concepts. So far it's a beautiful struggle."