Dolf Henkes artwork • painting • previously for sale The brothel

Dolf Henkes mainly painted in and around Rotterdam, the city where he was born and, apart from his travels, worked and lived all his life. He worked as a coppersmith, blacksmith, fitter and did jobs in the harbour. He drew and painted in his spare time. Henkes preferred depicting the harbour and the inhabitants of the city. As an engineer of a coal ship, he frequently painted the sea. From 1932 Henkes devoted himself completely to art and he found connectio with the Rotterdam artists' group R'33, with whom he regularly exhibits in Museum Boymans. During the occupation years in World War II, Henkes helped refugees and often worked in his studio to depict the destroyed harbour. After the war, Henkes received monumental commissions from major Rotterdam companies and exhibited regularly. In 1987 Henkes left his studio collection of thousands of works of art to the Dutch state by will. His work can be found in collections of many Dutch private and museum collections.