Jan Sierhuisartist • painter • watercolourist • draughtsmanAmsterdam 1928-2023

It is said that the work of the Amsterdam native Jan Sierhuis reflects the daring and speed of the direct painting of Rembrandt, Breitner and Cobra. The painter admired the free and expressive nature of these artists, which runs like a red thread through his work. Sierhuis was born in Amsterdam in 1928 and knew from an early age that he wanted to become a painter. That was first a house painter. Only later, in the 1950s, did he attend the Rijksakademie (1953-1956) for a number of years. As a painter, Sierhuis has always gone his own way, without joining groups, although there was certainly a connection with the expressionism of the Cobra artists. He started to make a name for himself in the 1960s. Willem Sandberg of the Amsterdam Stedelijk Museum started exhibiting and purchasing his work. In 1971 Sierhuis had his first major retrospective there.