Aart van Dobbenburgh
Aart van Dobbenburgh
Amsterdam 1899 – 1988 Haarlem
Van Dobbenburgh was a Dutch artist who became famous for his lithographs.
education
Aart drew various subjects, such as flowers, portraits and landscapes, but the human hand was his favourite to draw. He received his first education at the Applied Arts School Quellinus in Amsterdam, where he excelled in lithography. He has stated in various interviews that he was an admirer of Jan Toorop and Van Gogh.
exhibitions
From August 1919 his graphic work was regularly shown in exhibitions. He exhibited for the first time in ‘Kunstzaal Parklaan’ in Bussum and in January 1920 he was represented in an exhibition held by the Association for the Promotion of Graphic Art in the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.
posters
In September 1923 his poster for the Nederlandsche en Ned. Indische Tuinbouw en Bloemen Tentoonstelling Amsterdam (Dutch and Dutch East Indies Horticulture and Flower Exhibition) was published. In 1925 he made a second poster for the Algemeen Congres voor Dienstweigering (General Congress for Conscientious Objection). In the sixties he continued making various posters that were strongly socially and religiously engaged.
lithographic oeuvre
Initially his style still showed characteristics of impressionism and in some cases cubism. However, at the end of the 1930s Aart van Dobbenburgh’s work gradually became more realistic and reached a great refinement. His total lithographic oeuvre is estimated to comprise approximately 800 works.
woodcuts and watercolors
In addition, Aart made a number of woodcuts and watercolors. His most famous are the lithographs of mother Queen Emma (1936), his cousin Dr Willem Drees (1949), Henriette Roland Holst (1949) and the then Queen Juliana (1961).
Tolstoy and Dostoevsky
Van Dobbenburgh illustrated works by, among others, the Russian writers Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. In 1949 Tolstoy’s War and Peace appeared with lithographs of the main characters by Van Dobbenburgh. He also drew ‘Katoesja’ and ‘Mary’ from Tolstoy’s ‘Resurrection’ and ‘Anna Karenina’.
books
In 1936, the same years as his appointment as teacher at the Royal Academy in The Hague, his book ‘Grafische Kunst’ was published. In 1941 Jos de Gruyter and Prof. Dr. W. Banning wrote ‘Uit het werk van Aart van Dobbenburgh’ with his lithographs. Johan Schwencke wrote ‘The world of Aart van Dobbenburgh’ in 1960, comprising 46 images of van Dobbenburgh’s work.
collections
Work by Aart van Dobbenburgh is represented in the Rijksprentenkabinet in Amsterdam, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, Jeroen Boschhuis in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Gemeentemuseum The Hague, Nederlands Steendrukmuseum in Valkenswaard, Teylers Museum in Haarlem, Museum de Ovar in Portugal and in private collections around the world.
Prices
In 1965, the artist was awarded the Leo Tolstoy Medal. Shortly afterwards, Queen Juliana appointed him Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau (Ridder in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau).
source: wikipedia
bibliography:
Het lithografisch werk van Aart van Dobbenburgh, A. van der Boom, in Maandblad voor Beeldende Kunsten 1932, pag 99 t/m 113
Uit het werk van Aart van Dobbenburgh, J. de Gruyter en dr. W. Banning, Den Haag, 1941, De Driehoek.
De wereld van Aart van Dobbenburgh, J. Schwencke, Zwolle, 1963, J.J. Tijl.
Aart van Dobbenburgh ofwel van vreugde en verdriet, G. Luidinga en T. de Vries, Den Haag, 1976, Nijgh en van Ditmar.
De litho’s van Aart van Dobbenburgh, L. Burgers en W. Drees sr., Haarlem, 1984, Joh. Enschede en Zn.
On our bulletin board you can find a small article about Aart van Dobbenburgh with a handwritten letter from Willem Drees.