Quick Facts
Biography
Kees Verkade (born 1941 in Haarlem) is a Dutch artist and sculptor. He specializes in modeling the human form, with an emphasis on movement and emotion. Most of his sculptures are set in bronze. They depict a variety of people, including children, clowns, athletes, dancers, mothers, and lovers. Verkade also creates gouaches and silkscreens to accompany his sculptures.
Biography
Early life
Kees Verkade was born in 1941 in Haarlem. He took painting lessons with Gerrit van ’t Net from 1958 to 1963, and from Dirk Bus at the Royal Academy in The Hague.
Career
In 1964, he had his first exposition in the Haarlem Vleeshal (the former municipal meat market, now belonging to the Frans Hals Museum. This was a success and the Frans Hals Museum bought two of his sculptures. He specializses in carving and sculpture. One of his early works is in the Haarlem Vleeshal. His big breakthrough came when his work (at that time mostly depicting sports movements) was noticed by an American author visiting Haarlem in 1969. He showed photographs of Verkade's sculptures to friends. Verkade then proceeded to become an internationally recognized artist, and many local associations bought his work. His work can be seen in public places around Haarlem and Zandvoort, where he lived and worked.
In 2013, he did a public sculpture of the late Rainier III, Prince of Monaco (1923-2005), which stands outside the Prince's Palace of Monaco.
Personal life
He has been a resident of Monaco since 1979.
Selected works
- H.S.H. Princess Grace of Monaco (1983) in the Princess Grace Rose Garden, in Fontvieille, Monaco
- Triomf (1995) in Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Malizia (1997) a statue of François Grimaldi in Monaco
- Tightrope Walker (1979), Columbia University, New York City
- Selected works
Grace Kelly in Fontvieille Park and Princess Grace Rose Garden
Triomf (1995), Rotterdam.
1978 Bronze statue of family with picnic basket. Situated at the entrance to the park 'Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen' in Vogelenzang, Netherlands.
