Rooskens, Anton (1906-1976) - 1968 The Conversation (Ambassade Hotel, Amsterdam)
Anton Rooskens went to technical school in Venlo from 1924 to 1934. In 1935 he moved to Amsterdam. As a painter he was self-educated. In the works he made during the nineteen thirties, mainly landscapes, the influence of Van Gogh prevailed. In 1945 Rooskens visited the exhibition "Art and Freedom" at the Rijksmuseum where he observed sculpture from Africa sculptures and New-Guinea. The simplified, straight shapes of this art can be found in his work of the early post-war period in which also the influence of cubism can be detected. He was the co-founder of the Nederlandse Experimentele Groep which merged with CoBrA later. Rooskens participated in the illustrious exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum in 1949 and then he withdrew from the movement.
The connection with CoBrA turned out to be very stimulating for Rooskens. He developed a personal language of magic signs in penetrating black, yellow, ochre, blue and red and he painted compositions in which masks, shields and images of gods were entwined in a jumble of spontaneously painted areas of color. In 1954 he painted, influenced by African art, in a geometric style for a short period. From 1956 he put, in a more and more dynamic manner, abstract signs on large canvasses on which black paint, put on in sturdy strokes, is of a prominent presence. In about 1965 the fantastical beings, reminiscent of the CoBrA period, emerged again. Until the time he died in 1976 his paintings were brighter again.
Rooskens, Anton (1906-1976) - 1968 The Conversation (Ambassade Hotel, Amsterdam)
Anton Rooskens went to technical school in Venlo from 1924 to 1934. In 1935 he moved to Amsterdam. As a painter he was self-educated. In the works he made during the nineteen thirties, mainly landscapes, the influence of Van Gogh prevailed. In 1945 Rooskens visited the exhibition "Art and Freedom" at the Rijksmuseum where he observed sculpture from Africa sculptures and New-Guinea. The simplified, straight shapes of this art can be found in his work of the early post-war period in which also the influence of cubism can be detected. He was the co-founder of the Nederlandse Experimentele Groep which merged with CoBrA later. Rooskens participated in the illustrious exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum in 1949 and then he withdrew from the movement.
The connection with CoBrA turned out to be very stimulating for Rooskens. He developed a personal language of magic signs in penetrating black, yellow, ochre, blue and red and he painted compositions in which masks, shields and images of gods were entwined in a jumble of spontaneously painted areas of color. In 1954 he painted, influenced by African art, in a geometric style for a short period. From 1956 he put, in a more and more dynamic manner, abstract signs on large canvasses on which black paint, put on in sturdy strokes, is of a prominent presence. In about 1965 the fantastical beings, reminiscent of the CoBrA period, emerged again. Until the time he died in 1976 his paintings were brighter again.