In his ‘Amongst Gods and Ghosts’ series, Sjaak references mythical individuals, famous historical figures and invisible people on the street. He combines aspects of the classical world with street musicians, street vendors and the homeless via subtle references and elements and by giving his subjects self-conceived iconographic attributes. Sjaak plays with colour and focus to lead your eyes across the canvas. The detailed facial expressions and gazes of his subjects contrast with the sketch-like background, encouraging you to immerse yourself in the individuals depicted and start to imagine how they feel. Working with oil paint and intense acrylic colours to add neon accents to dark backgrounds, Sjaak forms animals and shapes that leap out from the canvas here and there. By placing his subjects and each of their references against dusky, dreamy backdrops, Sjaak creates the conditions for new, timeless stories, ready to be told by a modern Theocritus or Homer.