{"id":976,"date":"2017-10-05T18:11:17","date_gmt":"2017-10-05T17:11:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/?p=976"},"modified":"2017-10-06T12:22:30","modified_gmt":"2017-10-06T11:22:30","slug":"article-in-the-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/?p=976","title":{"rendered":"Article in The Times"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"Article-header Theme--sport\">\n<div class=\"Article-container Article-headerContainer\">\n<h1 class=\"Article-headline Headline--article Headline\">Van Persie\u2019s artist father keen to carve identity of his own<\/h1>\n<p class=\"Standfirst Article-standfirst Standfirst--article\">Game Daily: <strong>As the former Arsenal striker enters the twilight of his football career, his dad shows no signs of slowing down at his art studio in Rotterdam<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"Article-body Article-container Theme--sport\">\n<div class=\"Article-meta Meta\">\n<div class=\"Meta-primary\"><span class=\"Byline Meta-content\"><span class=\"Byline-name--article\">Paul Hirst<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"Meta-secondary\">\n<div class=\"\"><em><time class=\"Dateline\">September 15 2017, 12:00pm,\u00a0<\/time><span class=\"Publication\">The Times<\/span><\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--lead Article-media\">\n<div class=\"Media-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"8111AE06-17B5-4B3C-89AD-CC244E7B2481\" class=\"Media-img Apple-web-attachment-container\" src=\"cid:86C52EC9-745E-426A-978D-08CF219B7D98\" sizes=\"(min-width: 768px) 685px, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/imageserver\/image\/methode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2Feff81d08-9a00-11e7-8c3c-cb45202c3d59.jpg?crop=1500%2C844%2C0%2C78&amp;resize=320 320w, https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/imageserver\/image\/methode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2Feff81d08-9a00-11e7-8c3c-cb45202c3d59.jpg?crop=1500%2C844%2C0%2C78&amp;resize=685 685w, https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/imageserver\/image\/methode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2Feff81d08-9a00-11e7-8c3c-cb45202c3d59.jpg?crop=1500%2C844%2C0%2C78&amp;resize=1200 1200w, https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/imageserver\/image\/methode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2Feff81d08-9a00-11e7-8c3c-cb45202c3d59.jpg?crop=1500%2C844%2C0%2C78&amp;resize=2400 2400w\" alt=\"The cutout depicting Van Persie\u2019s famous goal against Spain is one of the standout pieces in his father\u2019s studio\" \/><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><em>The cutout depicting Van Persie\u2019s famous goal against Spain is one of the standout pieces in his father\u2019s studio<\/em><br \/>\n<small class=\"\">PAUL HIRST\/REX SHUTTERSTOCK<\/small><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption><\/figcaption><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\" Article-content\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">On first sight, it appears that studio No 3 in the old water tower on the banks of the Nieuwe Maas river in Rotterdam is a homage to Robin van Persie, one of the city\u2019s most famous footballers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">After brushing aside a long curtain, which acts as a door to separate the artist\u2019s studio from the others in the disused tower, and looking right, three pieces of art featuring Van Persie stand out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The most eye-catching of the lot is a tribute to the striker\u2019s most famous goal. \u201cThe best goal of the World Cup,\u201d according to our host.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"Pullquote -pullquote\"><p>One day Robin said: \u2018What my father does with his hands, I will do with my feet\u2019<span class=\"Byline\"><span class=\"Byline-name\">Bob van Persie<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"\">It is a metallic cut out of Van Persie in mid flight, depicting Van Persie\u2019s famous diving header against Spain in the 2014 World Cup, of course.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Below, resting on a table, sits a clock made up of red white and black, Feyenoord\u2019s colours, with Van Persie above the No 32, the player\u2019s squad number during his time at his hometown club.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Then, resting on the table lies a football patterned with silhouettes of people rather than pentagons, with \u201cPersie\u201d scribbled on the top.<\/p>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--withCaption Media--primary Article-media Media--withCredit\">\n<div class=\"Media-holder\">\u00a0<a class=\"dt-single-image\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobpoppetjes.jpg\" data-dt-img-description=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1021\" src=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobpoppetjes.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"685\" height=\"456\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobpoppetjes.jpg 685w, https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobpoppetjes-410x273.jpg 410w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 685px) 100vw, 685px\" \/><\/a><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><em>Bob van Persie scrunches up pages from newspapers, comics, magazines and even Arsenal match day programmes to make human-like figures<\/em><br \/>\n<small class=\"\">PAUL HIRST<\/small><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Welcome to the workplace of the artist and sculptor Bob van Persie, Robin\u2019s father.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The parameters for our chat in his wacky studio, which contains a trumpet, fishing rods and a broom among other things, are firmly set in advance. \u201cNo talk about Robin,\u201d he says. \u201cJust art.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">It is not that Bob is not proud of his son, who left United for Fenerbahce two years ago. Far from it. He watches every one of Robin\u2019s games through a Turkish TV stream. \u201cI\u2019ve got a box,\u201d he says later as we drive to one of his exhibitions in the centre of Rotterdam.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">He may share a surname with one of the most famous Dutch footballers of recent times, but Bob van Persie is determined to carve out an identity of his own \u2014 even at the age of 70.<\/p>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--withCredit Media--withCaption Article-media Media--secondary\">\n<div class=\"Media-holder\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><a class=\"dt-single-image\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobklok.jpg\" data-dt-img-description=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1017\" src=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobklok.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"498\" height=\"332\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobklok.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobklok-410x273.jpg 410w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><em>There are nods to Robin van Persie throughout his father\u2019s studio<\/em><br \/>\n<small class=\"\">PAUL HIRST<\/small><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cI\u2019m my own person,\u201d he says, through the haze of smoke from the cigarette he is puffing on.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">That person is commonly known in the Netherlands as \u201cthe paper artist.\u201d For years, Bob has been scrunching pages from newspapers, comics, magazines and even Arsenal matchday programmes, into human-like figures. \u201cPaper dolls,\u201d he calls them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">The artist will then place rows of them on his canvas to create the image of a packed crowd, mainly at sporting arenas. He has created one that portrays the crowd at Wimbledon and many more of football matches he has attended.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cIf you get to a stadium early and watch the stadium fill up, it\u2019s like a painting being created with different colours,\u201d he says. \u201cYou don\u2019t see faces, you see shapes and colours. I have been doing this for 35 or 40 years.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--withCaption Media--primary Article-media Media--withCredit\">\n<div class=\"Media-holder\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><a class=\"dt-single-image\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobexpo.jpg\" data-dt-img-description=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1018\" src=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobexpo.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"685\" height=\"456\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobexpo.jpg 685w, https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bobexpo-410x273.jpg 410w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 685px) 100vw, 685px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><em>The effect is to create the image of a packed crowd<\/em><br \/>\n<small class=\"\">PAUL HIRST<\/small><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">It is a painstaking task that requires a keen eye and plenty of practice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cIt takes me a lot of hours,\u201d he says. First it\u2019s selecting the pages, cutting them to the right size, and then make the dolls and put them together then harden them, sometimes with varnish. I used to use a marble to keep the shape of the head, but now I use paper inside the head to keep it steady.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">One canvas hangs in the Emirates Stadium. Bob made the collage from programmes given to him by Paul Irwin, the player liaison officer with whom he and his son developed a close relationship.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cThe piece is in the entrance to the stadium,\u201d Bob says. Arsenal was very friendly, family-like. Manchester United was different. It was more business-like there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Bob van Persie\u2019s work has received critical acclaim in the Netherlands. He sells his work through his popular website and he also had an exhibition in the trendy Northern Quarter of Manchester during his son\u2019s three-year spell at Old Trafford.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">His work is popular in football circles too. Robert Pires, the former Arsenal midfielder, bought one of Van Persie\u2019s collages at auction.<\/p>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--withCredit Media--withCaption Article-media Media--secondary\">\n<div class=\"Media-holder\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><a class=\"dt-single-image\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob-atelier.jpg\" data-dt-img-description=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1019\" src=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob-atelier.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"498\" height=\"332\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob-atelier.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob-atelier-410x273.jpg 410w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><em>Bob van Persie\u2019s work has received critical acclaim in the Netherlands<\/em><br \/>\n<small class=\"\">PAUL HIRST<\/small><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">In the house of Dennis Bergkamp, another former Arsenal player, hangs a piece of art given to him by his former team mate\u2019s father \u2013 the No 10, packed with colourful paper dolls inside. And the artist\u2019s son also has a collage in his house in Istanbul.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Bob realised he wanted to become an artist from a young age.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cI think I fell in love with my art teacher,\u201d he says. \u201cI have forgotten her name. She never answered my love. I was too shy and young to tell her. I loved doing things like working with stone and drawing so I went to art school in Rotterdam.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\" Media Media--withCaption Article-media Media--inline\">\n<div class=\"Media-holder\"><\/div><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\"><a class=\"dt-single-image\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob10.jpg\" data-dt-img-description=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1020\" src=\"http:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob10.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"320\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob10.jpg 320w, https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Bob10-218x273.jpg 218w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><figcaption class=\"Media-caption\"><em><span class=\"Media-captionContainer\">Bob van Persie gave this No 10 to Dennis Bergkamp<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Art \u201cis like meditation\u201d Bob says, which came in handy many years ago when his son, who was particularly hyperactive as a child, was growing up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">There was never any hope of Robin van Persie following in his father\u2019s footsteps, thanks mainly to his footballing talents.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cOne day Robin said: \u2018What my father does with his hands, I will do with my feet,\u2019\u201d Bob says after taking another puff on his cigarette.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">He was right of course. He would go on to have a long and successful Premier League career. At 34, Robin is entering the twilight of his career, but his father shows no signs of slowing down.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cI am 70 years old and I don\u2019t feel like quitting,\u201d he says. \u201cMy work never ends. I love to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Van Persie\u2019s artist father keen to carve identity of his own Game Daily: As the former Arsenal striker enters the twilight of his football career, his dad shows no signs of slowing down at his art studio in Rotterdam Paul Hirst September 15 2017, 12:00pm,\u00a0The Times The cutout depicting Van Persie\u2019s famous goal against Spain&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":977,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media","category-nieuws","category-3","category-4","description-off"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bobvanpersie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}