I imagined John Blanke as a complex man full of character and emotion, who wrote and performed his own music during the quieter moments, boldly testing the boundaries of his art. The artists of 1511 struggled to capture his depth, and here he also resists my urge to caricature him. I cannot begin this image with black and white. In order to try and understand John Blanke, I need burnt umber and African gold.​

Pen Mendonça
Graphic Facilitator and Cartoonist