Han Bennink

Jazz and Humor

The drummer Bennink is a self-taught musician and a phenomenon in the international jazz world, known for his combination of jazz and absurdist humor. He is a co-founder of the Instant Composers Pool (ICP) orchestra, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and continues to make waves internationally.

Visual Art and Inspiration

The visual artist Bennink trained at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. Strongly influenced by the anti-art of Dada, he also puts art with a capital “A” into perspective. Out of what he calls “a kind of engagement with things,” Bennink reuses seemingly worthless objects from his immediate surroundings, such as broken drumheads and sticks. They are given a second life in his sculptures and installations. For his drawings and collages, Bennink draws on his personal memories and intuition. Birds and airplanes often reappear in these, symbols of the same freedom he embodies during his performances.

Exhibitions

Irma Boom created several platforms on which Bennink has spread out his work. These displays allow us to peer into his mind, where music and visual art are inextricably linked and where we can follow his spontaneous, often absurdist associations.
Irma Boom is an internationally renowned designer who has received numerous awards, including for her book designs. She designed the monograph HAN BENnInK for Bennink, which will be published this fall during the exhibition.