Lot 609: Montijn, Jan - Etching

Hand-Signed, numbered and dated. fully framed. Jan Montyn Jan MontynJan Montyn (1924 - 2015) was a well-known Dutch painter, draughtsman, graphic artist and poet with an extraordinary life. It is said of him that his eyes saw more than is bearable for a human being. His adventurous and extraordinary life journey took him to many hellish - but also paradisiacal - places, leading to a body of work of beautiful etchings, paintings and poems. Formation Jan was born into a strict Orthodox Protestant family. His father was a deacon. To escape this stifling environment, Jan sought adventure by enlisting in German military service through the National Socialist Youth Storm. During his German service, he was shipwrecked in the Baltic Sea only to end up in the trenches on the Eastern Front where he was wounded. After the war, he managed to get to the West in time where he was made a prisoner of war by the Americans. But he escaped and volunteered for the Foreign Legion via Marseille. This apparently pleases him badly and he escapes again to return to the Netherlands where he is interned for three years.During this time, he develops an interest in the arts. After his internment, he leaves with the United Nations as a commando to Korea where he is wounded again. During his recovery in Japan and during his time in Korea, he develops an interest in Asia. Upon returning to the Netherlands, he joins the Dutch army as an instructor. Among other things, he also works as a museum curator for a Regimental Museum. During this time, the much war violence he has experienced begins to take its toll he develops an unstable and short-tempered character and throws himself increasingly into drinking and sexual excesses. Admission to a psychiatric clinic and discharge from the army follow in 1957. Jan now settles in Amsterdam, where he meets Anton Heyboer in the art scene, who introduces him to the technique of etching and with whom he travels extensively through southern Europe and North Africa. Jan also travelled through North Africa with artist Thom Gerrard. In the early 1960s, Jan settles in Provence where he renovates a small house. From there, he and his girlfriend again take trips through southern Europe and North Africa. He begins to achieve success with his series of etchings produced in France. In the late 1960s - early 1970s, Jan sought adventure again with long trips in Asia including the conflict zones of Cambodia, Vietnam and later Myanmar. He experienced bombings, ran into the Vietcong, saw the horrors of the Khmer Rouge and the colonel's regime in Myanmar but also visited ancient temples and forests. He soaks it all in and makes his increasingly successful series of etchings at home in France based on his many impressions and experiences. He has more and more exhibitions in Europe. During this period, Jan also dedicates himself to humanitarian organisations active in these areas such as Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders. He tries to volunteer to help them alleviate the cruel fate of the people in the war zones. In 1975, in Europe, he meets his wife Hi-en Tjia with whom he has a daughter. The family continues to travel across North Africa and Asia. Oeuvre For decades, Montyn sketched and watercoloured all his impressions while travelling and incorporated them into series of etchings on his return home, which he exhibited around the world with growing success. He develops a completely unique style and colour palette which makes him a much-loved and much-collected artist to this day. Montyn's work started out fairly figurative but from the 1960s onwards he increasingly stylised his work towards his own more abstract imagery. Initially making etchings in black ink, he later used more and more colour in his work. Montyn always etches himself in small editions and alternately in the techniques: drypoint, aquatint and taillight. The recurring ochre tones in his work symbolise his connection with the earth. His work can be seen in major museums such as the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art New York (MoMa). But also in the Bibliotheque National de France in Paris and numerous other leading museums. In 1982, Dirk Ayelt Kooiman wrote a novel based on Montyn's life, entitled "Montyn". His eventful life and oeuvre have been the subject of many publications, as well as films such as a 2004 documentary by Jan Louter: "Jan Montyn: love me or leave me".

55.00x50.00 cm (21.65x19.69 inch)

Arches paper

1984

Good condition.

Nederland

Note on the illustration: Please understand that for technical reasons the illustration may show color differences to the original. In case of numbered objects you will receive a copy from the edition. The numbering may differ from that shown in the illustration.