Jan Rijlaarsdam - mixed media, signed bottom right

The name Jan Rijlaarsdam has been established in the Dutch art world for many decades, and with good reason. Versatile as he was, in both styles and applied techniques, he left behind an impressive oeuvre. Ranging from realistic to impressionistic and expressionistic, with even excursions into the abstract, he managed to surprise again and again. He also experimented with different materials and surfaces.
the painter Jan Rijlaarsdam is also called the painter of the fringes of society. Clochards gathering and prostitutes in cafes were favorite subjects. In the tradition of Isaac Israëls and Henri de Toulouse Lautrec, he was a true interpreter of city life.
As a 15-year-old boy, he cycled to Amsterdam to capture the city center with its high houses and weathered walls. In 1932 he received a royal grant; now he could devote himself full-time to art.
He became a member of the Hilversum Painters' Association, Sint Lucas Amsterdam and later of the Gooise Painters' Association.
In the early 1930s he regularly stayed in Antwerp and Bruges. He did not visit Paris until the 1950s. This becomes his favorite destination; the vibrant Parisian city life attracts him. The clochards dressed in rags and groups of prostitutes are favorite subjects. Later, Rijlaarsdam can also be found in Spain, especially in Barcelona.
Jan Rijlaarsdam developed his own unique style. It is impressionistic with a strong tendency towards abstraction. Shape, position and color are important.