Another artist from the Netherlands who promises to grow more important by the year is Jan van Heel. Van Heel has become popular among art lovers in the region of Den Haag , because of his clown paintings. A bit like Bernard Buffet became popular by a larger audience through his portraits of Clowns faces.
but although he stayed true to realism, his paintings have a child like quality. Wether these are his clown portraits or bird cage scenes. there is always a simplicity in his works that reminds me of drawings by children. Van Heel was promoted by Knoester art, but since Ton Knoester died some years ago, his paintings appear at local auctions without any financial backup and they fetch small prices at auction, making this the perfect time to buy van Heel. http://www.ftn-books.com has some nice publications on van Heel and de NIEUWE HAAGSE SCHOOL
