Hans van der Kroefartist • painterGouda 1946

Hans van der Kroef paints colourful figure pieces and still lifes in oil in a realistic way in which the environment plays a major role. Van der Kroef was born in Gouda in 1946 and studied at both the academy in Rotterdam and Antwerp. Already in 1965 Van der Kroef had his first exhibition in his birthplace. Four years later he won the Art Prize of the city of Gouda. His oeuvre mainly consists of compositions with figures and animals, which get a dreamlike and surreal feeling through his use of color, focus on the sky and realistic but unlikely combinations. Like a child with a donkey at a circus tent or a clown pulling an elephant tail. His compositions are precisely determined and every detail is carefully placed in the image plane. Van der Kroef has many exhibitions to his name throughout the Netherlands.