Invitation card for the PHOEBUS exhibition in 2002
Wilhelm Lehmbruck (1881-1919)
A sculptor, not that very well known outside Germany, but a sculptor who nevertheless has its own museum. The Wilhelm Lehmbruck museum in Duisburg has a nice collection, but the Lehmbruck name is kept alive by practically all large museums in Germany.
Personally i do not know the fascination , because in my opinion Lehmbruck has not freed himself of making classical sculptures. He did not make the full transition into modern sculpture as for instance Giacometti did. Perhaps this is explained from the short life he had and he did not have the time to develop himself completely. If you look at that way, Lehmbruck took the first steps into modern sculpture but never had the time to complete his ideas on modern sculpture. www.ftn-books.com has some nice Lehmbruck publications available.
Franco Pinna (1925-1978)
Without knowing who the photographer was i have encountered , many, many photographs by Pinna in the time i read the PARIS MATCH. Studying french i had to read the language, which meant that i bought weekly the Paris Match. Pinna’s photographs are easily recognizable and have a signature of their own.
He was born in La Maddalena, on July 29, 1925. In 1952 he moved to Rome and, after a brief experience as a cinedocumentary operator, constituted the cooperative Fotografi Associati together with Plinio De Martiis, Caio Mario Garrubba, Nicola Sansone, Pablo Volta, which was dissolved in 1954 due to economic difficulties. He followed the anthropologist Ernesto De Martino during several research expeditions in southern Italy (Lucania, 1952, 1956, 1959, Salento 1959), obtaining documents of great artistic and cultural value. In 1959 he published his first book, entitled La Sila, which was followed by Sardegna una civiltà di pietra (Sardinia, a stone civilization) (1961). Meanwhile, his photos appear in the magazines Life, Stern, Sunday Times, Vogue, Paris Match, Epoca, L’espresso, Panorama. From 1965 Pinna became the trusted photographer of Federico Fellini and made scene photos of his films Giulietta degli spiriti, 1965, up to Fellini’s Casanova in 1976; he also publishes some photo books (I Clowns, Fellini’s Film) inspired by his films. He died suddenly in Rome on April 2, 1978.
www.ftn-books.com
has a nice italian publication on Pinna available.
Salvatore Ferragamo (1898-1960)
Ferragamo has now become a classic within the fashion industry, but before this . Ferragamo was one of the very talented and appreciated fashion designers who made HAUTE COUTURE and started with shoes. This is a how many of the great names in fashion started in some way. Hermes started with saddles, Vuitton with suitcases and Ferragamo with shoes. In many of these cases the brandname is the most important asset. The Ferragamo brandname is no exception.
Under the umbrella of Ferragamo and its classic logo, many fashion products have been marketed. Shoes, scarves, bags, glasses, belts, jewelry ….all FERRAGAMO, but i must confess that these are not ordinary designs, these are true collectable items for fashionistas, as is this beautiful publication on Salvatore Ferragamo.
Heinrich Campendonk (1889-1957)
Heinrich Campendonk was not unknown to me , but my time at the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, made me much more aware of the qualities Campendonk had as a painter. Being a member of DER BLAUE REITER made me study his work more than average since i love the works by the artist of this group of painters.
Campendonk was the son of a textile merchant, stopped his textile apprenticeship in 1905. From 1905 – 1909, he received artistic education from Johan Thorn Prikker, a very progressive school for arts and crafts at the time. He became friends with Helmuth Macke, August Macke, Wilhelm Wieger, Franz Marc and Paul Klee during this time. He was born in Krefeld. He was a member of the Der Blaue Reiter group, from 1911 to 1912. When the Nazi regime came to power in 1933, he was among the many modernists condemned as degenerate artists, and prohibited from exhibiting. He moved to the Netherlands, where he spent the rest of his life working at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam, first teaching Decorative Art, printmaking and stained-glass, then as the Academy Director.He died as a naturalized Dutchman.
www.ftn-books.com has some nice Campendonk publications available.
Klaar van der Lippe (1961)
I knew the name and person of Klaar van der Lippe, because of her presence in a dutch survival television series, but it was not until 4 years ago that i came across a publication on van der Lippe published with in the series on new dutch sculptors ( also Baerveldt). The book shows in an excellent way why her works is important. In an almost casual way she alters her surroundings. Rearranging, replacing almost everything within sight , creating a new space and sculpting it into something very “Klaar van der Lippe”. The book which is now for sale at www.ftn-books.com shows some of these projects .
Vito Boggeri (1939)
At many times you come across an artist of whom you never have heard before, but because of the found book(s) you are starting to look into the life and works of an artist. One of these artist is Vito Boggeri , the book …published on the occasion of the exhibition held at the Fondazione Campania in 2007. The works look like NEUE WILDE paintings with an Italian touch. This is really appealing. If there is one artist with whom i would like to compare his works it is the dutch John van ‘t Slot. I prefer van ‘t Slot bis works but still these are very nice paintings which i would like to see sometime in a museum setting.
Philippe Hiquily (1925-2013)
I came accross this artist some years ago when i go interested in sculpture from the mid sixties. Chadwick, Jacobson and certainly Alecxander Calder were my heroes, but then there was also Hiquily …….Philippe Hiquily was a French artist and designer known for biomorphic furniture and sculptures. He was able to combine modernist design, insect physiognomy, and human sexuality, to produce unique Surrealist works. Born on March 27, 1925 in Paris, France, he attended the École des Beaux-Arts in Orléans and later the École Supérieure des Beaux Arts in Paris. In Paris, Hiquily mingled with prominent artists, including Jean Tinguely and Germaine Richier. In 1959, he received the Critic’s Prize for his sculpture at the Paris Biennial. That same year, he showed work at New York-based gallery The Contemporaries, where he met the American artist Robert Rauschenberg. Hiquily died on his 88th birthday on March 27, 2013 in Villejuif, France. Today, his works are held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Montreal.
Now i have finally a very nice publication on Hiquily in my inventory available. Silkscreened cover and very well worth collecting.
Jan van Heel (1898-1990)
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. www.ftn-books.com has some nice publications on van Heel and de NIEUWE HAAGSE SCHOOL
Piet Dirkx weekly
Postcard: Anatomische les
