During the war years, Berend Hendrik (1918 – 1997) was trained as a monumental artist at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam. This department focused on the integration of art in buildings during that period. The commissioned works often had a narrative character and were designed and executed under Hendrik’s supervision. In the post-war period, Hendriks executed dozens of monumental works in the Netherlands, using techniques such as stained glass and mosaics, as well as his signature glass in concrete technique. Twenty years later, Hendriks’s style evolved towards a more abstract form. He no longer designed recognizable religious figures, but instead focused on the pure relations between form and color. Through both his monumental works and series of autonomous pieces, he explored the interplay of color patterns, geometric shapes, rhythms, and movements, referring to a new, universal language of art. This gave birth to series of works, executed in acrylic paint on panels, as well as intricate drawings that were interconnected and sometimes followed one another in a sequential narrative, reminiscent of a graphic novel. From 1966 to 1984, Hendriks taught color and form theory at the Arnhem Academy. He was also a devoted music lover and connoisseur, commenting on art and greatly influencing the art scene in Arnhem. The Rijnstate exhibition showcases a selection of Hendriks’s works from the period of 1975 to 1995.
www.ftn-books.com has several Hendriks titles now available.
