More than 800,000 Dirkjan comic books have been sold in the Netherlands, and the comic strip appears daily in two national newspapers, Algemeen Dagblad and Het Parool. Ever since the start of Operation Night Watch, Rembrandt’s masterpiece has been making regular appearances in the strip, and whenever Dirkjan and his housemate Bert get involved it usually ends badly for the painting. So why is it that the comic artist Mark Retera features The Night Watch so often in his comic strips?

My Night Watch

I first encountered the work of Rembrandt when I was very young. I remember my father would often be reading books about him, and he’d tell me about Rembrandt’s revolutionary approach to painting. But actually I have a stronger connection with works by Rembrandt other than The Night Watch. I think Self-Portrait with Two Circles is incredibly good – as someone who draws, I’ve always been obsessed with faces, and there’s no better portrait than this one. I also love his etchings, particularly The Three Trees. It’s a truly a stunning landscape.

I chose The Night Watch for my cartoons because it’s the most famous painting in the Netherlands. It’s iconic, it’s big and everyone knows about it. I saw on the news that it was being restored, and immediately thought it would be a nice topical subject to use. Whatever Dirkjan and Bert do with it is bound to go wrong of course. It caught fire once, and Dirkjan ripped paint off it with masking tape. At first I did wonder whether it would go down well with the conservators, but if there’s one thing my comics make clear it’s that conservation is a profession you really shouldn’t let Dirkjan get involved in.

When I use The Night Watch I paste in a picture rather than drawing it. There’d be no point, I can’t draw as well as Rembrandt. I suppose I’ve been to the Rijksmuseum about seven times. The Night Watch was overwhelming every time. The composition, use of colour, the layout: it’s all fantastic. There’s one visit that was most memorable of all: A couple of years ago I was allowed to visit after closing time, and it was a remarkable experience to be able to stand alone in front of the painting.

The comics

• Biljarten

• Nachtwacht brand

• Afplaktape

The comics are in Dutch.