Aat Veldhoen - Rotaprint, Mother and child. - Sold

Aat Veldhoen (Amsterdam, 1934 - 2018)
After acquiring his etching press in 1950, Aat developed into a portrait artist with a keen eye for detail. His portraits reveal his profound psychological insight into those he portrays. Simon Carmiggelt has characterized Aat Veldhoen's work as a lifelong and genuine interest in "all aspects of human life." At the end of the 1950s, Aat focused on depicting "humans on the border between life and death." At the time, this was considered controversial. In the operating room of an Amsterdam hospital, he created etchings of people on the operating table. This series continued with prints of women giving birth. He then rode along in police cars to draw traffic victims. In 1964, Aat immersed himself in the Rota print technique. This allowed him to realize his ideal of creating art for the people. Thanks to their high production, his prints could be sold for a few guilders each. The prints are displayed on a cargo bike and sold that way. When Aat is forced to stop after two years, it marks the end of his etching period. From that point on, he dedicates himself to painting and sculpture. He won't pick up etching again until years later. Aat: "I'm in the fortunate position of being an artist and being able to make a living from my work. Few artists can do that. It doesn't matter to me whether my work is in the collection of the Dutch Central Bank or hanging in a museum. I think the most important thing is that I can paint. I always try to remain styleless, because once you develop a style, you quickly lapse into Mannerism, and I think you should always try not to become a Mannerist. You should try new things and materials. Nowadays, as an artist, you can buy anything you want, and with all those things, I try to remain as styleless as possible. I will always have a firm belief in visual art because it's just like playing the violin. It will never disappear. It's something that belongs to the people, no matter how it develops." Whether you paint figuratively or non-figuratively, it's always autobiographical. Every artist makes art about themselves.