Partners

Draw Club Leiden – Moderator (2019–2026)

For more than five years I had the privilege of serving as one of the moderators of Draw Club Leiden (DCL).

Draw Club Leiden is a free, volunteer-run community where artists of all skill levels meet every week to draw together in a relaxed and welcoming environment. During my years as moderator I contributed to many aspects of the club, both behind the scenes and during the drawing evenings themselves.

My role
My goal as a moderator was not simply to organise activities, but to help create an environment where people felt welcome, inspired and encouraged to contribute. Draw Club Leiden has always been a volunteer-driven community, and I believe its strength lies in members taking initiative, sharing ideas and organising activities together. Supporting that spirit of collaboration has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my role.

Community & Venue Management
One of my main responsibilities was helping to ensure that the weekly meetings could continue without interruption. This included maintaining contact with café and hotel owners, confirming availability of the venue, and searching for new locations whenever circumstances required it.

Organisation & Digital Infrastructure
To support the moderators, I helped establish several practical systems, including:

• Setting up the Microsoft Office 365 and Outlook environment.

• Creating a central archive for announcements, logos and other club resources.

• Setting up the Draw Club Leiden Instagram account.

• Creating a dedicated WhatsApp group for the moderator team.

Communication
Communication played an important role in keeping the community active.

My contributions included:

• Writing and co-creating the weekly announcements for drawing evenings and special events.

• Publishing updates on social media.

• Monitoring and responding to messages via email and Instagram.

• Maintaining contact with moderators of other Dutch Draw Clubs to exchange ideas and encourage collaboration.

During the Drawing Evenings
A large part of the moderator role happened during the events themselves. This included:

• Welcoming newcomers and helping them feel at home.

• Helping maintain a friendly, inclusive atmosphere.

• Supporting fellow moderators in creating a positive experience for everyone.

• Intervening when necessary in situations involving inappropriate behaviour.

• Ensuring the venue remained comfortable, well organised and tidy.

• Maintaining a positive relationship with the staff of our host locations.

Event Coordination
Besides the weekly gatherings I helped organise additional activities by:

• Creating a six-month event calendar.

• Coordinating transportation and meeting points for members travelling together.

• Supporting the organisation of special drawing events.

Highlights
Some initiatives I particularly enjoyed helping organise include:

• Arranging a free two-hour guided tour of the Egyptian art collection at the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden.

• Organising a live model drawing session during the Leiden Kunstroute.

• Arranging a stand-up comedy performance with an art-related theme during the same event.

Encouraging Member Initiatives
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a moderator was encouraging members to develop their own ideas. Among the initiatives that grew from this were:

• the Draw Club Leiden website.

• a group visit to the Michelangelo exhibition at the Teylers Museum.

• a Sumi-e workshop.

• and several member-organised drawing events.

Partnerships
I established a partnership with the art supply store Towi, allowing active Draw Club Leiden members to receive a 20% discount on art materials.

Continuing as a member
In 2026 I decided to step down from my moderator role. However, I remain an active member of Draw Club Leiden and look forward to continuing to participate in the weekly drawing evenings, organise occasional activities and support new initiatives within the community.

TeeKay-421 vzw is the Belgian Star Wars fanclub. TeeKay publishes four magazines a year (articles, interviews, reviews), organizes club meetings & contests, runs a website with message board and has held several charity actions. The magazine and website are in Dutch.

For more information visit TeeKay - 421 at www.teekay-421.be

Tim Veekhoven - Contributor Official Star Wars website, Star Wars Insider Magazine, President of TeeKay-421

"TeeKay-421, the Belgian Star Wars fanclub, met Anton for the first time several years ago at the F.A.C.T.S. convention in Gent. He joined our fanclub and showed us some of his artwork. At first Anton's art was used in our magazine's PeeKay section as line art. But it became clear that Anton wanted to do more for our fanclub. His work gradually expanded to creating several TeeKay-421 Magazine (back)covers, to designing the art for our membership cards and the poster for several TeeKay fandays. He's always eager to help out at conventions and uses his professional expertise to help the fanclub implement new ideas. I'm very grateful that Anton has become a valuable part of TeeKay-421 and I hope we'll be able to rely on his versatile skills for many years to come." 

Mission Orange and The Orange Charity Gunner are a Star Wars charity project started by Magnus in 2007. His charity effort is aimed at helping and supporting the child hospital Sternenbruecke in Hamburg.

For more information on:

• Mission Orange please visit http://www.mission-orange.de/

  • Sternenbrueck please visit www.sternenbruecke.de

Magnus Muller - founder of the official German charity Star Wars project www.mission-orange.de

"Talent has no name, it is an endowment. But when I met Anton, then I knew talent has a name! I know a lot of official artists, but its ever the same, only the man or woman with the biggest heart is the right one for the job. One amazing part of our teamwork was the very close thinking. One of Anton's talents is that he creates what you have as a picture in your mind, plus some special great ideas from himself. When Anton showed me the artwork of my idea "LOST...R2-D2", I was amazed. It was 100% the same of what I had as a vision.

The new artwork for the Jedi-Con 2014 Poster was a 100% co-operated thing and it was fun to see when our ideas were flying around. OK, as owner of the basic idea, you always have suggestions and you want to see what you have invented. But as free-thinker I love proposals and Anton has good ideas and at the end you have a perfect artwork.

I wish you Anton, all the best for the future and hope all your dreams come true, you deserves it! THANKS!!!"

Offizieller Star Wars Fan Club (OSWFC) is the official Star Wars Fan Club in Germany. In 1995 the club gained the licence to be called the official Star Wars fan club Germany and changed its name to Offizieller Star Wars Fan Club (Official Star Wars Fan Club). The OSWFC has about 7000 members which receive the club edition of the official Star Wars magazine. 

For more information visit OSWFC at www.oswfc.de

Robert Eiba - Editor-in-chief of the Official German Star Wars Magazine

"Anton van Dort has created great artworks for our Journal of the Whills (the exclusive magazine for all members of the Official German Star Wars Fan Club). He contributed some of the most popular and moody cover pages. It’s great to work with this very talented artist."

Blue Milk Special is a free webcomic that parodies the Original Trilogy one scene at a time, starting with A New Hope, including The Holiday Special (yes, you read right) and Splinter of the Mind’s Eye (the first ever Star Wars novel, published before The Empire Strikes Back). After six years of work they are currently about half way through Return of the Jedi. The comic is written and illustrated by Rod and Leanne Hannah. The comic is non profit and has been translated into several languages.

For more information visit Blue Milk Special at www.bluemilkspecial.com