Jan Knikker jr.artist • painterLeiden 1911-1990 Den Haag

Just like his father, Jan Simon Sr., Jan Simon Knikker Jr. is considered one of the late generations of the Hague School. He lived and worked most of his life in The Hague, where he was a student at the Academy of Visual Arts. He specialized in painting impressionistic landscapes and lively cityscapes, where portraying a certain mood and atmosphere was paramount. His cityscapes in particular were very popular abroad. Father and son gained their inspiration from their house on De La Reykade on the edge of the city with a panoramic view over the countryside. Together the painters had a high productivity and sold much of their work through the art trade. That did Knikker Jr. no harm and he increasingly lived like a bon vivant, well groomed and well dressed. He preferred to work only during the day, painting by artificial light was out of the question, which is why his oeuvre mainly consisted of landscapes and cityscapes.