Kees Salentijn

The Academy and the Mediterranean Light

The studio at the Rijksacademie voor Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam provides the first rigorous framework for Kees Salentijn. Under the guidance of O.B. Kat, the focus remains on the discipline of free painting. This formal training eventually gives way to a more visceral, wandering education. The quiet halls of the Prado in Madrid offer a different kind of lesson, where the weight of Spanish history settles into his vision. This period of study is not confined to museums; it extends to the lived experience of a Berber family in Morocco, where the textures of a different life begin to seep into his perception.

By the 1980s, the geography of his work shifts decisively toward Spain. The landscape is no longer just a subject but a force. The death of the matador Paguiri acts as a sudden, sharp catalyst. It pulls him toward the ritual of the bullfight, a theme that defines a significant chapter of his output. In 1985, this preoccupation manifests in the Amsterdam exhibition Les folies d’Espagne. The bullfight becomes more than a cultural observation; it transforms into a metaphor for the struggle inherent in the act of painting itself.

The Evolution of Form and Space

His creative process undergoes a metamorphosis as he moves between the urban centers of Venlo and Amsterdam. The late 1980s bring him to the excavations of Ampurias, where the remnants of Greek and Roman settlements offer a new layer of inspiration. His work begins to bridge the gap between the spontaneous, unconscious energy of the Cobra movement and the structured intensity of Spanish culture. This synthesis creates a visual language that is both raw and deeply rooted in historical memory.

The early 1990s mark a period of rapid, almost frantic production. Working from an Amsterdam studio, the distinction between different mediums begins to blur. His output becomes a continuous stream of expression where the following elements merge:

• Symmetry and collage
• Spontaneous drawing
• Layered painting

The Language of the Plaza and the Sun

The works in the Museum van Bommel van Dam, Venlo, reflect a preoccupation with light and public space. Titles like Plaza en la tarde and Puesta del sol suggest a preoccupation with the specific, fleeting quality of the afternoon sun. His compositions often grapple with the tension between the built environment of a Pueblo Andaluz and the vastness of the Playa Catalunya. The brushwork carries the weight of his travels, capturing the essence of a place through a lens of rapid, decisive movement.

In his later years, the work often moves toward the abstract or the semi-abstract, frequently categorized under titles such as Zonder Titel. These pieces represent the culmination of his movement from the structured lessons of the Rijksacademie to a state of pure, uninhibited creation. The subject matter—be it a beach, a village, or a bullring—is filtered through a lifetime of movement between the Dutch north and the Mediterranean south.