Emo Verkerk
(Amsterdam 1955)
Rudy Klomp (2016)
Signed and dated 2016 on the reverse
Oil on canvas, 100 x 120.1 cm
Provenance:
– Willem Baars Projects, Amsterdam (2018)
– Private collection, the Netherlands
Note:
Emo Verkerk made his name with portraits, a genre that is hard to pin down within the visual realm of contemporary art. He creates portraits of distinguished figures who intrigue him or for whom he has great admiration. Verkerk does not paint in a traditional sense, for he translates his personal vision into a unique interpretation of the subject.
His series of portraits show a striking picture of his interests and reflect his world of ideas. As Verkerk says, “You can see my portraits as an allegorical diary: the persons whom I paint represent thoughts or ideas that occupied my mind or struck me. It’s about empathy. See it as a tribute, a present to the person portrayed.”
This painting is a portrait of the eccentric artist Rudy Klomp. Verkerk portrayed Klomp several times as a tribute to his idiosyncrasy, of which Klomp has been the embodiment in word and image.