Bernardus Stefanus Henricus (Ben) Zegers (

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Nethe ...

, 3 March 1962) is a Dutch

visual artist The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts a ...

, active as a sculptor and installation artist,Ben Zegers; male / Dutch; sculptor, installation artist
at ''rkd.nl''. Last updated 2019-06-18. and teacher and coordinator at the

Gerrit Rietveld Academy The Gerrit Rietveld Academie, also known as Rietveld School of Art & Design and Rietveld Academy, is an art academy in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The academy was founded in 1924 and offers programs in fine arts and design. History In 1924, the In ...

. Zegers came into prominence with sculptures, that balances between sculpture and functional design. His early work was told to "alienate household items, especially mattresses, but also chairs and tables, and places them in the useless and meaningful sculptural context."

Biography

Education and early career

Zegers was born and raised in Utrecht, and from 1980 to 1986 studied art at the St. Joost Academy of Art and Design in Den Bosch. He then continued his studies for two years at the

Ateliers '63 De Ateliers (formerly Ateliers '63) is an independent art school in located in Amsterdam. It was founded in Haarlem in 1963, among others by Ger Lataster, Mari Andriessen, Nic Jonk, Theo Mulder and Wessel Couzijn. This "group of established art ...

in Haarlem from 1986 to 1988. In 1988 Zegers settled as a visual artist in Rotterdam, where he has lived and worked ever since. In that year the

Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds The Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds was founded by Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands in London in 1940 during World War II in order to buy war material for the British and Dutch Governments. It continued after the war as Stichting Prins Bernhard Cult ...

Zegers and five other young artists

Giny Vos Regina Engelina Maria (Giny) Vos (born 30 October 1959) is a Dutch visual and conceptual artist. She has made almost thirty monumental works of art for public spaces. Life Vos graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam in 1988 a ...

, Nicolaas de Haan, Agnes Roelofse, Hans van Bentem, and Trudi van den Berg were granted an assignment to get their professional practice started. In 1988 he had his first solo exhibition in the

Teylers Museum Teylers Museum () is an art, natural history, and science museum in Haarlem, Netherlands. Established in 1778, Teylers Museum was founded as a centre for contemporary art and science. The historic centre of the museum is the neoclassical Oval ...

, Haarlem. In 1989 he was one of the 25 Dutch contemporary artists at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

. His work was engaged that year into the city collection of Rotterdam at Museum Boymans Van Beuningen together with the work of other young artist, that had settled in Rotterdam;

Geert van de Camp Geert is a Dutch given name of Germanic origin, equivalent to the German Gerd and the English Gerry. The name is a condensed form of Gerard, itself a combination of the Germanic words ''ger'' (spear) and ''hard'' (strong or brave) meaning "strong ...

, Allard Budding, and Lidwien van de Ven. Ben zegers-1574355656

In 1990 he participated in group exhibitions at Galerie Van Krimpen and Galerie Fons Welters in Amsterdam and at Museum Boymans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, where he regularly returned. He was awarded the

Charlotte Köhler Prize Charlotte Köhler Prize is a Dutch incentive award given to young talent (under the age of 35) in visual arts and theatre. The prizes, €30,000 each, were established in 1988 in honour of the actress and is annually given by the Prins Bernhard C ...

in 1994.

Later career

In 1991 Zeger was selected with Ab van Hanegem,

Aernout Mik Aernout Mik (born 3 July 1962) is a Dutch artist, internationally known for his installations and films. Biography Mik spent his childhood in Groningen and studied there from 1983 to 1988 at the Academie Minerva. He also had lessons from . H ...

, Kaap, and Lidwien van de Ven for the ''

São Paulo Art Biennial The São Paulo Art Biennial ( Portuguese: ''Bienal de São Paulo'') was founded in 1951 and has been held every two years since. It is the second oldest art biennial in the world after the Venice Biennale (in existence since 1895), which serves as ...

,'' Eventually the Dutch contribution was redrawn, and ended up at an art fair in Los Angeles. In the new millennium Zegers also started as sculpture teacher and coordinator at the

in Amsterdam. The works of Zegers are among others in the city collection of the Museum Boymans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, and in public spaces in Rotterdam, Oostzaan, and Dokkum. In 1990 Zegers was granted an encouragement award by the Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst, and in 1993 he received a Charlotte Köhler Price.

Exhibitions, a selection

* 1989. ''International Festival,'' Edinburgh.ANP.
Nederlandse eigentijdse kunst in Edinburgh
. ''Trouw,'' Meppel, 1989/07/21, p. 12.Ed.
Nederlandse kunst present in Edinburgh
" ''De Volkskrant''. 's-Hertogenbosch, 1989/08/05, p. 9. * 1990. '' Rotterdam Assorti,'' Hal Building, RotterdamHenk Drent,
De kwaliteit verrast de keuzeheren Rotterdam Assorti: tijdsbeeld met veertig kunstenaars uit dit gebied
" ''Het vrĳe volk : democratisch-socialistisch dagblad,'' Rotterdam, 1990/05/02, p. 15. * 1990. ''First Blossom'', Galerie Van Krimpen, Amsterdam. * 1990. ''Collected Works '2'', Museum Boymans van Beuningen, Rotterdam. * 1990. ''MultipleChoice'', Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam. * 1990. ''Mixed Company'' solo exhibition, Kunstmuseum Den Haag, The Hague. * 1991. ''

''Ed.
Vijf Nederlanders naar Biënnale van Sao Paulo
" ''Trouw,'' Meppel, 1991/03/21, p. 23. * 1993. ''Verwandtschaften exhibition'', Kunsthal Rotterdam. * 1993. ''Look Alike: Ben Zegers''. Museum Boymans-van Beuningen Rotterdam November 21, 1993/31 January 1994. Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, 1993. * 2000. ''Ettre(s) a mon père.'' Kunsthal Rotterdam.''Rotterdams jaarboekje,'' 2000. p. 90

Photo gallery

Ben Zegers.jpg, ''Gerrit,'' Tuindorp Oostzaan, 1992 Rotterdam kunstwerk vaart vrij.jpg, ''Vaart vrij!'',

Katendrecht Katendrecht is a neighbourhood of Rotterdam, on the south bank of the Nieuwe Maas. It is located between the Rijnhaven and the Maashaven. Katendrecht was a separate municipality from 1817 to 1874, when it merged with Charlois. The neighbou ...

, 1997 Vaart Vrij, monument voor Amsterdamse vakbondsleider Edo Fimmen (1881-1942), 1997.jpg, ''Vaart vrij!'',

, 1997 Zonder titel (Dokkum).jpg, Untitled, Dokkum, 2004 File:Rotterdam kunstwerk iedereen is dood behalve wij.jpg, ''Iedereen is dood behalve wij'',

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, 2011.

Publications

* Zegers, Ben. ''Ben Zegers: Museum Boymans-van Beuningen Rotterdam November 21, 1993/31 January 1994''. Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, 1993.

References

External links

benzegers.nl
website {{DEFAULTSORT:Zegers, Ben 1962 births Living people Dutch sculptors