Stang Gubbels is a man who lets his visual actions speak louder than words. Makes sense because he has lived and worked from Rotterdam for over 30 years, where he graduated from the Willem de Kooning Academy in 1990. ‘No words, but deeds’ is the motto of the city. He is educated as an illustrator and graphic designer and works on commission, or as a ‘graphic illustrator,’ as his LinkedIn says. His clients range from small and large cultural institutions to commercial companies, both in the Netherlands as well as abroad.

All those descriptions of him are correct, but they do not justify him enough. Stang’s optimistic, playful and quirky work always surprises, sometimes even himself, and that surprise is reflected in his creative finds. The characteristic of his work is that it is always fresh, cheerful, funny, clear, imaginative, and unimpededly creative, unrestrained by any medium. Unhindered by limitations or fantasy, he always puts a smile on your face because it is always exactly what you do not expect. From video animation to laser cutter, from plasma cutter to clay, from mixed-media to augmented reality, anything goes to shape his Stanginian universe.