Jacobus Willem Rentmeester (born 28 February 1936), nicknamed "Co" or "Ko", is a Dutch

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

. He later became a

photojournalist Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography (such ...

and covered the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

among other newsworthy events.

Life and career

Rentmeester was born in 1936 in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

. He competed with Peter Bakker in

double scull A double scull is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two persons who propel the boat by sculling with two oars each, one in each hand. Racing boats (often called "shells") are long, narrow, and broadly ...

and won bronze at the

1959 European Rowing Championships The 1959 European Rowing Championships were rowing championships held on the Mâcon regatta course on the Saône in Mâcon, France. The event for women was held from 14 to 16 August, and 16 races were held. The event for men was held from 20 to 2 ...

Mâcon Mâcon (), historically anglicised as Mascon, is a city in east-central France. It is the prefecture of the department of Saône-et-Loire in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Mâcon is home to near 34,000 residents, who are referred to in French as M ...

, France. Bakker and Rentmeester reached the finals in

for

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

where they came fifth. In early 1961, Rentmeester moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and studied

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is emplo ...

at the Art Center College in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

. After receiving his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

, Rentmeester initially started his career as a freelance photographer in 1965 for Life Magazine. A short time later, he joined the LIFE Staff from April 1966 thru 1972 when LIFE Magazine folded. He first covered the Watts Riots in Los Angeles, documenting many of the dramatic events, which earned him his first accolades as a photographer. Between late 1965 and 1969 Rentmeester was in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, where he particularly covered the Vietnam war. One of his pictures showed an M48 tank gunner looking through a gunsight. It was selected as

World Press Photo of the Year The World Press Photo of the Year award is part of the World Press Photo Awards, organized by the Dutch foundation World Press Photo. Considered one of the most prestigious and coveted awards in photojournalism, The World Press Photo of the Ye ...

and notably it was the first color photograph to win the award. He was also in Hong Kong during the extensive civil disturbances in 1967. After Rentmeester was wounded by a

Vietcong , , war = the Vietnam War , image = FNL Flag.svg , caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green. , active ...

sniper near Saigon, he returned to the U.S. in 1972, his pictures from a travel through

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

were shown in the

Van Gogh Museum The Van Gogh Museum () is a Dutch art museum dedicated to the works of Vincent van Gogh and his contemporaries in the Museum Square in Amsterdam South, close to the Stedelijk Museum, the Rijksmuseum, and the Concertgebouw. The museum opene ...

, Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC and Asia House, New York. In the following years, Rentmeester worked for numerous major publications as a photojournalist and as an advertising photographer

Awards

* 1967:

, 1st prize * 1972: Magazine photographer of the Year, School of Journalism, University of Missouri * 1973: World Press Photo, 1st prize in category ''Sports'' * 1976: New York Art Directors Club award for his photo essay on Thomas Jefferson * 1979: World Press Photo: 2nd prize in category ''Color picture stories'' * 1980: Missouri School of Journalism, award for an essay on the U.S. Air Force * 2001: KLM Paul Huf Award , Amsterdam The Netherlands * 2018: Lucy Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement in Sports Photography

Publications

* "Three Faces of Indonesia," 1974, Thames & Hudson Ltd. * "Holland on Ice," 1998, First Edition. * 'FOOTPRINTS" Co Rentmeester 2007, Uitgeverij de Kunst, Weesp, The Netherlands

References

External links

Official Website Co-Rentmeester.com

Co Rentmeester at worldpressphoto.org

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rentmeester, Ko 1936 births Living people Dutch male rowers Olympic rowers of the Netherlands Rowers at the 1960 Summer Olympics Dutch photojournalists Photography in Vietnam War photographers Rowers from Amsterdam Life (magazine) photojournalists European Rowing Championships medalists Photographers from Amsterdam 20th-century Dutch people