If you grew up in the Netherlands during the eighties, you couldn't escape the Doorzon family. They were everywhere. They were loud, vulgar, and incredibly Dutch. But what most people forget—or never actually knew—is that the most iconic satirical comic in Dutch history wasn't a solo act. Not at first.
Before Gerrit de Jager became a household name, there was Prutswerk.
That was the pen name for the duo of Gerrit de Jager and Wim Stevenhagen. They were two art students from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie who decided to set the world of Dutch illustration on fire. Honestly, they kinda did. They didn't just draw funny pictures; they captured the messy, cramped, hypocritical reality of the Dutch welfare state and held up a mirror that was as distorted as it was accurate.
The Birth of Prutswerk
It started in the late seventies. Gerrit and Wim were classmates. They had this chemistry that you only see in legendary creative pairings—think Lennon and McCartney but with ink stains and a very Dutch sense of cynicism. They began publishing under the name Prutspruts, which basically means "fiddle-fiddle," before settling on Prutswerk (literally "lousy job" or "botched work").
It was a self-deprecating name for a duo that was actually incredibly skilled.
Their early work appeared in the legendary alternative magazine De Vrije Balloen. This wasn't your typical Disney-style comic. It was raw. It was the underground scene. They were experimenting with characters like Bert J. Prulleman and Han Gewetensvim.
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But the real magic happened when they looked at the average Dutch "Doorzonwoning"—those ubiquitous row houses with big front windows—and wondered what was actually going on inside.
The Rise of De Familie Doorzon
In 1980, the first De Familie Doorzon album hit the shelves. It was a revelation. It didn't just poke fun at families; it tore apart the "pillarized" society of the Netherlands. You had:
- John Doorzon: The lazy, porn-obsessed father who just wanted to be left alone.
- Ma Doorzon: The feminist-leaning, perpetually frustrated mother.
- Doortje: The daughter who was... well, she was a lot for 1980s sensibilities.
- Ronnie and Tonnie: The criminal son and the gay son, respectively.
It was the first time a comic strip truly felt like it was talking about us. Not some idealized version of the Netherlands, but the real, gritty, "gezellig" but dysfunctional reality. The duo won the Stripschapspenning for that first album. They were the kings of the scene.
Why Gerrit de Jager and Wim Stevenhagen Split
Success is a weird thing. It builds pressure. By 1984, the cracks were showing.
If you look at the credits of the early albums, it’s always Gerrit de Jager and Wim Stevenhagen. They shared the writing; they shared the drawing. But as the series exploded in popularity, the creative direction started to shift.
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The 1984 Split
It wasn't a dramatic, tabloid-style blowout, but it was definitive. They stopped working together. Gerrit de Jager took De Familie Doorzon and Roel en zijn Beestenboel with him. Wim Stevenhagen kept Bert J. Prulleman and Han en Hanneke.
Looking back, it’s clear who got the "bigger" half of the divorce. De Jager turned Doorzon into a massive franchise that lasted decades. He became the face of Dutch satire.
Wim Stevenhagen, on the other hand, moved toward more educational and commissioned work. He’s still an incredible illustrator—you’ve probably seen his work for Amnesty International or the Anne Frank Foundation without even realizing it—but he stepped out of the satirical spotlight. Some fans still argue that the early Prutswerk years had a specific "bite" that was lost when Gerrit went solo, even if the later albums were more polished.
The Legacy of the Duo
What made the Gerrit de Jager and Wim Stevenhagen era so special was the timing. The Netherlands was changing. The old social structures were crumbling, and Prutswerk was there to document the chaos.
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They introduced characters like the Biereco's—the two construction workers who were perpetually "renovating" things into a state of total destruction. Their catchphrases became part of the Dutch lexicon. "Redekorating? Resprai Kar?"
The Master of Silhouettes
Gerrit de Jager eventually evolved his style into something very specific: the use of heavy silhouettes and expressive outlines. He once mentioned in an interview that he realized he could pack more emotion into a silhouette than a detailed face. It was a lesson learned during those early years with Wim, where they had to make characters stand out in crowded magazine pages.
What You Should Do Next
If you’re a fan of Dutch culture or just great satire, you need to go back to the roots. Don't just look for the modern Gerrit de Jager collections.
- Find the "Prutswerk" editions: Look for the first four albums of De Familie Doorzon that specifically credit both names. There is a 2013 collection called Al het prutswerk van Prutswerk that bundles these early gems in their original black-and-white glory.
- Compare the styles: If you’re an aspiring artist, look at how the line work changed before and after 1984. You can see the moment Gerrit’s individual style starts to take over.
- Check out Wim’s solo work: Search for Pruts Pruts Private Kreye. It shows a different side of the partnership's DNA—a bit more wordplay-heavy and surreal.
The partnership of Gerrit de Jager and Wim Stevenhagen was a lightning-in-a-bottle moment for European comics. They proved that you could be crude, political, and hilarious all at once, without losing the "human" element of the characters. Even though they went their separate ways forty years ago, the "Doorzon" world they built together remains the gold standard for Dutch satire.