Korstiaan "Kees" Verkade (12 October 1941 – 29 December 2020) was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

artist and sculptor. He specialized in modeling the human form, with an emphasis on movement and emotion. Most of his sculptures are set in

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

. They depict a variety of people, including children, clowns, athletes, dancers, mothers, and lovers. Verkade also created

gouache Gouache (; ), body color, or opaque watercolor is a water-medium paint consisting of natural pigment, water, a binding agent (usually gum arabic or dextrin), and sometimes additional inert material. Gouache is designed to be opaque. Gouache h ...

s and

silkscreen Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen to fill the open mesh ...

s to accompany his sculptures.

Biography

Early life

Kees Verkade was born on 12 October 1941 in

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

. He wished to attend the

Gerrit Rietveld Academie 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 I ...

but was rejected. He took painting lessons with Gerrit van ’t Net from 1958 to 1963, and from

Dirk Bus Dirk Bus (5 December 1907 - 10 June 1978 in The Hague) was a Dutch sculptor. Bus was educated in sculpture at the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague and Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam. He was a student of Bon Ingen-Housz and Jan B ...

at the

Royal Academy of Art, The Hague The Royal Academy of Art (KABK, nl, Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten) is an art and design academy in The Hague. Succeeding the ''Haagsche Teeken-Academie'' (part of the Confrerie Pictura), the academy was founded on 29 September 1682, m ...

. He graduated from the Academy in 1963.

Career

In 1964, he had his first exposition in the

Vleeshal The Vleeshal is a historical building dating from 1603 on the Grote Markt in Haarlem, the Netherlands. History ''Vleeshal'' means meat-hall; it was the only place in Haarlem where fresh meat was allowed to be sold from 1604 to the 18th century. ...

(the former municipal meat market), now belonging to the

Frans Hals Museum The Frans Hals Museum is a museum located in Haarlem, the Netherlands. The museum was established in 1862. In 1950, the museum was split in two locations when the collection of modern art was moved to the '' Museum De Hallen'' (since 2018 called ...

. This was a success and the Frans Hals Museum bought two of his sculptures. He specialised in carving and sculpture. In 1966 he sold his first public work ''Winkelen'' to the municipality of Haarlem in 1966. His big breakthrough came three years later when American photographer

David Douglas Duncan David Douglas Duncan (January 23, 1916 – June 7, 2018) was an American photojournalist, known for his dramatic combat photographs, as well as for his extensive domestic photography of Pablo Picasso and his wife Jacqueline. Childhood and educat ...

bought several of his bronze statues and showed them to his friends. Verkade then proceeded to become an internationally recognized artist, and many local associations bought his work. His work can be seen in public places around Haarlem and Zandvoort, where he lived and worked. In 2013, he did a public sculpture of the late

Rainier III, Prince of Monaco Rainier III (Rainier Louis Henri Maxence Bertrand Grimaldi; 31 May 1923 – 6 April 2005) was Prince of Monaco from 1949 to his death in 2005. Rainier ruled the Principality of Monaco for almost 56 years, making him one of the longest-ruling m ...

(1923–2005), which stands outside the

Prince's Palace of Monaco The Prince's Palace of Monaco ( French: ''Palais princier de Monaco'') is the official residence of the Sovereign Prince of Monaco. Built in 1191 as a Genoese fortress, during its long and often dramatic history it has been bombarded and besie ...

.La famille princière de Monaco dévoile une statue du prince Rainier III
''Nice Matin'', November 18, 2013

Personal life

He moved to Monaco in the late 1970's. In 1979 he married baroness Ludmila von Falz-Fein. He died there on 29 December 2020, aged 79.

Selected works

* '' H.S.H. Princess Grace of Monaco'' (1983) in the Princess Grace Rose Garden, in

Fontvieille, Monaco Fontvieille (; lij, Funtanaveya ) is the southernmost ward in the Principality of Monaco. It was developed by an Italian architect, Manfredi Nicoletti, between the 1970s and the 1990s. History In contrast to the other city districts Monaco-V ...

* ''Triomf'' (1995) in

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 ...

, Netherlands * ''Malizia'' (1997) a statue of

François Grimaldi Francesco Grimaldi (french: François, italics=no; eng, Francis, italics=no), called (from Italian: "''the malicious''"), was the Genoese leader of the Guelphs who captured the Rock of Monaco on the night of 8 January 1297. He was the son of ...

in Monaco * ''

Tightrope Walker Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

'' (1979),

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, New York City Verkade Rotterdam 001.jpg, ''Triomf'' (1995),

Kees-verkade-the-picknick.JPG, 1978 Bronze statue of family with picnic basket. Situated at the entrance to the Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen park in Vogelenzang, Netherlands

References

External links

keesverkade.com

KEES VERKADE Unique, Distinguishing and Always in Development
{{DEFAULTSORT:Verkade, Kees 1941 births 2020 deaths Artists from Haarlem Dutch expatriates in Monaco Dutch sculptors Dutch male sculptors Monegasque sculptors Royal Academy of Art, The Hague alumni