The exhibition highlights the remarkable, still underappreciated oeuvre of artist Bernard Essers (ID/NL 1893-1945).
His graphic work from the first half of the twentieth century—including book illustrations for renowned authors such as Arthur van Schendel (1874-1946) and Adriaan Roland Holst (1888-1976)—demonstrates a unique style that combines symbolism and graphic refinement. The exhibition offers a renewed appreciation for the work of this idiosyncratic artist, whose printmaking is both technically and artistically beautiful. He settled in Bergen in 1920, where he worked among the artists of the Bergen School and where he would remain until the Second World War. Essers’ work will be flanked by the graphic work of several contemporaries, including that of Jan Toorop.
Curator
Eliane Odding
Eliane Odding (1993) is an independent art historian and exhibition curator specializing in modern and contemporary art. She has been involved in various projects, including exhibitions at the Grote Kerk Alkmaar, Museum Kranenburgh, Stedelijk Museum Schiedam, and Museum van Bommel van Dam in Venlo. Previously she curated the exhibition In the Back of the Sea in Museum Kranenburgh.
Artworks
Bernard Essers
Dunepan with two figures
Around 1925
Bernard Essers
Lente’s landing
1920
Bernard Essers,
Bretonse baai, Douarnenez
1927
Partners
