Harold Leslie Thornton, better known by his artist name Harold the Kangaroo, was an amazing painter from Australia. He was an eccentric and colourful character. And so was his work.
He was even called “The Greatest Genius Who Ever Lived”, albeit only by himself and with a fair amount of irony.
Harold made lots of paintings in various styles, but he’s best known for his ‘psychedelic’ works’, full of life and lots of bright colours.
One of Harold the Kangaroo’s most famous works hits very close to home, as he’s responsible for the one-of-a-kind exterior of our coffeeshop The First. He was a good friend of The Bulldog and its founder Henk de Vries (there’s even an urn with part of his ashes at The First), so he was happy to give the world’s first coffeeshop an exterior that you simply cannot ignore.
Shortly before he passed away in 2004, Harold asked Henk to sponsor the shipment and storage of his complete collection of works. Henk was more than happy to help out his dear friend and took care of shipment, safe storage and even the high insurance costs.
After Harold’s death, several people came to claim his paintings as part of their inheritance, but Henk wants to preserve the memory and legacy of his friend. So he’s willing to return the paintings, but only under the condition that a quality museum is established to display Harold’s work. That way, people can continue to admire his unique style just as countless people admire The First on a daily basis. as his
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