Wouter Stips:"Even Children need reading".
Children need to equip themselves with good reading, even from fiction. They will find out things that they never know exist.
Wouter Stips made this remarks among other things, when Soni Farid Maulana, a reporter from the daily newspaper Pikiran Rakyat was busy making quotations. Small libraries accessible to children is a good place to begin in their quest for intellectual growth. Stips is more than willing to help Indonesian children from illiteracy and ignorance.
Wouter communicated with the children who happened to be members of the Small Libraries Pilot Project ( Pondok Baca ) , organized by the team of the District on Literacy Promotion. He got the impression that those children aspired to be as well informed as their counterparts in more advanced countries. The aspirations came out to be so touching when expressed so plainly by the children themselves. No obviously doubt the children want to grow up intellectually.
During his brief stay in Bandung 25 June-30 July 2005, Wouter Stips who is one of the well-known painter - writer in Europe, especially to the children in The Netherlands worked so hard on this new book to manifest a communicative dialogue between parents and children about how both to perceive life. He gave the book a sweet title " Anak Dalam Hatiku Anak Dalam Diriku ?" The text based on story -telling by the children and written as the poems . The paintings allow children to use their imagination ( comments from Rtn Sunaryo ).
The book " Anak Dalam Hatiku Anak Dalam Diriku " due to begin printing in October/November 2005 and launched in February 2006. The book will appear in 2 languages: Dutch and Indonesian. Its English version : "Gentle Child Inside" is now still in consideration. 5000 copies will be available in each language.
Working on this book to be dedicated to Yayasan Pondok Baca Rotary Indonesia ( The D3400 Foundation of Small Libraries ), Stips admitted that he was working on his dream picture- where man and animals would get along and communicate freely-. Anything can happen in a picture just like what a child can fantasize.
A few months before he left for Indonesia, another nice family book of his creation was published.Titled " Ongeveer Zoveel hou ik van jou " that means That much I love You , talks about children and life. 3500 copies were sold in one and half month.
He said that books could be more than just a source of amusement; books allow spiritual fulfilment.
Wouter Stips was born in 1944. He is a father with three children and one grandaughter and the husband from an intellectual artist Martina. He was a graduate of The Academy of Fine Arts. He has been busy working in many galleries in Holland, France, England and Spain, creating and selling his graphic art works. Wouter was also invited to participate in painting and sculpture on the occasion of The Queen's 25th Regional Jubilee.
PP Sunaryo- the proprietor of Sunaryo Art Space Gallery - is Wouter Stips host. He expressed his interest in Wouter's spontaneous, even seemingly childish works. He deems these works to be aesthetically remarkable.
Rtn Sunaryo is convinced that Wouter Stips will be able to arouse children's interests in both pictures and texts and to attracts appreciation from the adullts. Regardless of forms, communication between children and adults is essential for a child intellectual growth.
