David Schulmanartist • painter • watercolourist • draughtsmanHilversum 1881-1966 Laren (N.H.)

David Schulman, self-taught, was one of the most gifted painters of the Laren School. He painted and drew with a smooth, powerful stroke Gooi landscapes and snowy village views bathing in a bright orange-golden sunlight. He regularly visited fishing villages around the Zuiderzee and found inspiration in the lively bustle around the Loosdrechtse Plassen. In addition to landscapes, in which no figures were usually visible, he also made commissioned portraits. Schulman's work in a dreamy, impressionistic style was already highly regarded during his lifetime.

At a young age, Schulman came into contact with well-known painters such as Albert Neyhuys and Tony Offermans through his father Lion Schulman, himself a painter and paint supplier. Schulman, who never trained at an academy, regularly received advice from them. In 1904, Schulman took part in an exhibition at Arti et Amicitiae in Amsterdam for the first time and Evert Pieters immediately bought his entry, a snowy view of Laren. Soon he became known to a wider audience and he was able to make a living from his painting. Jan Hamdorff helped him sell his work.

For many years, Schulman acted as a pivot in the Laren artists' world. He often judged exhibitions and was involved in the organization of anniversaries of his painter friends, including Frans Langeveld, Willlem Knip and Anton Mauve Jr. In Laren, Schulman had a villa with a studio built on Torenlaan in 1913. Because of his Jewish descent, his house was requisitioned by the Germans in World War II and he was deported to Camp Westerbork. However, he managed to escape here, but his father and many other relatives who had also been deported did not survive.

Schulman received many prizes and was the driving force behind the artists' associations 'De Tien', 'Laren-Blaricum' and the 'Gooische Painters Association'. At the age of 68 he became chairman of Arti et Amicitiae in Amsterdam. Until his old age, he died in 1966 as one of the last remaining painters of the Laren School, he continued to paint.