Dear List Members:

A group of art historians is planning an exhibition and publication about
the Dutch artist/designer Henri Verstijnen (1882-1940). They would like to
come into contact with museums, archives and private collectors who may have
examples of his work or other relevant information on the artist.

Information about Verstijnens work in Germany and Austria from 1902 onwards
would be especially welcome, since it is unclear if any of his designs for
ceramics or the ceramic objects themselves survived. This is why we are
appealing to colleagues for information.

Please feel free to forward the enclosed call for information to anyone who
might be interested. Thank you in advance for your kind-co-operation.

Yours sincerely,
Andréa Kroon.

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CALL FOR INFORMATION

Henri Cornelis Gerard Marie Verstijnen (1882 Soekaboemi, Indonesia - Den
Haag, the Netherlands 1940) studied drawing at the art academy in Arnhem in
The Netherlands, but most of his skills were self-taught. One of his first
commercial jobs was to design vases for the firm E. Estié & Co (=
Plateelbakkerij Zuid-Holland N.V.) in Gouda circa 1900. In 1902 he started a
tour of Germany and Austria. He worked as a designer for the glass and
ceramics factory E. Wahliss and the metal ware factory Baduin Heller &
Söhne
in Teplitz. It is unclear if any of his designs or examples of the decorated
ceramics from this period
survived. After this study-trip he settled in Maastricht in the Netherlands,
where he was employed as a designer at the Société Céramique factory for
several years.

Verstijnen moved to Den Haag in 1918, where he joined the artists
organizations 'Haagse Kunstkring' and 'Schilderkundig Genootschap Pulchri
Studio'. His work was on show in the galleries of these artists clubs and
several other galleries around the country. The artistic work of Verstijnen
includes drawings, graphics, pastels and oil paintings. He is best known for
his floral an animal subjects: flowers, birds, pets and exotic animals in
their natural environment. He toured the zoo's of Europe for inspiration.
Orchids, lilies, cranes, peacocks and under-water scenes of fish are
recurring themes. His style is
naturalistic, but also shows the influence of Art Nouveau and Symbolism.
Because Verstijnen was a member of a Theosophical lodge, his work also
includes images of lotus-flowers, Buddha's and religious/esoteric symbolism.
He signed his work in full or with a monogram of the initials "H.V.".

Verstijnen supported his income from artistic works with commercial
assignments. He illustrated (childrens) books and designed book covers,
posters and advertisements. His calendars with animal designs were very
popular, as were his caricatures for the newspaper 'De Groene Amsterdammer'
between 1925 and 1935, in which he portrayed animals as humans.

A group of art historians is planning an exhibition and publication about
Verstijnen. They would like to hear from anyone who has information on the
artist, or knows of surviving examples of his work in museum or archive
collections. For more information, please contact:

mrs. drs. Audrey Wagtberg Hansen (audreykroonwagtberghansen.nl).

drs. Andrea A. Kroon
Kroon & Wagtberg Hansen, kunsthistorisch projectmanagement
Thomsonlaan 94
2565 JE Den Haag (NL)
phone/fax: +31 (0)70 3603129
mobile phone: +31 06 22404978