K. (KEES) VERKADE

Artists

Biography

K. (KEES) VERKADE
1941 Haarlem (The Netherlands) - 2020 Monte Carlo (Monaco)

Kees Verkade was a Dutch sculptor and artist internationally recognised for his depictions of the human figure in motion. A passionate draughtsman from childhood, he trained under the Amsterdam artist Gerrit van 't Net. His talents were later recognised by lithographer Aart van Dobbenburgh, who taught graphic design at the Royal Academy in The Hague. There, Verkade first worked with black wax and clay, materials to which he remained loyal throughout his career. His first public commission, Winkelen, was acquired by the municipality of Haarlem in 1966. His international breakthrough came in 1969, when American photographer David Douglas Duncan discovered his work at an art market in Haarlem, had several bronze figures cast, and brought them to the South of France. The following year, TIME Magazine published a full article on 'the shy Dutch artist', calling him 'The Hottest Underground Sculptor', and commissions began to arrive from across the world. Verkade relocated to Monaco in the late 1970s and married Baroness Ludmila von Falz-Fein in 1979. Among his most prominent works in Monaco are a bronze bust of Princess Grace (1983) and a monumental statue of Prince Rainier III (2013), erected outside the Prince's Palace. Alongside his sculpture, Verkade worked extensively in watercolour and gouache. He died in Monaco on 29 December 2020, aged 79.