Freek van der berg (1918-2000) - Siesta

Freek van den Berg (May 29, 1918 – June 13, 2000) was a prominent Dutch painter who is often described as 'the last Dutch Fauvist'. With his expressive use of color and bold compositions, he brought a wholly distinctive, optimistic dynamism to postwar Dutch art.

Style and Influences

Although Van den Berg was largely self-taught, he developed an extremely refined and powerful style. His early work in the 1940s was strongly influenced by French Fauvism and German Expressionism. At that time he earned in Amsterdam the characteristic nickname 'the Kees van Dongen of Kattenburg'. Like Van Dongen, he painted with enormous color intensity and had a sharp eye for the mondaine life.