At times, one may momentarily forget that Willem Snitker is a painter, for he is eager to step away from the lonely and solitary craft to create works with others or bring together creators such as poets, musicians, and composers. His studio and Bleeker Gallery in Heemstede contain a treasury of beauties resulting from such collaborations. The first project conceived by Willem that I took part in was a portfolio of poetry and graphics by renowned artists like Jan Sierhuis, Harry Mulisch, Ger Lataster, Gerrit Achterberg, and Nono Reinhold.
If one characteristic is emblematic of Snitker’s vision on the visual arts, it is his eagerness to fling open the doors and windows of his studio and embark on collaborations with others, as seen most recently with David Mitchell for the “DEJIMA” project and a book object on Sicily with Geerten Meijsing. Among other notable collaborations, he worked with Milanese poet Franco Loi, the angels of Michel van der Plas, Lucebert, Jan Elburg, Toer van Schaik, Jan Cremer, and Bert Schierbeek. Most recently, he discovered 35 stunning, unknown drawings in the attic of Mari Andriessen’s studio and, along with his wife, gifted a monumental Lataster work to the Haarlem Philharmonie on a long-term loan.
This brings to mind the impressive endeavors of Italian Renaissance artists and the way in which artists in the early European Modernism movement collaborated on books, films, and buildings.
www.ftn-books.com has the signed VILLA AURELIA publication from 1996 availbale.
