Rita Camphuijsen

Whilst working on the Tré Kronor, I examined every detail carefully. In doing so, I discovered a Latin inscription on the palace façade and realised that it read ‘Deus Protector nos (ter)’; the final part should appear behind the little house. Govert took great pains to incorporate many details into his depiction of street life in old Stockholm. And, coming from a deeply religious family, he also drew attention to the religious invocation: ‘God protect us’. I learnt that this text, which appeared on many important old buildings in the 17th century, was also found on coats of arms. For a mini-exhibition around Easter, to which I was invited to contribute under the theme ‘Kyrie eleison’, I decided to paint the text in close-up in that 17th-century style.

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