Hermanus Ellen (Herman) Mees (18 September 1880 in Veendam – 28 November 1964 in

Zuidlaren Zuidlaren (Noordenvelds: ''Zuudlaoren'') is a village in the province of Drenthe in the Northern Netherlands. Zuidlaren has just over 10,000 inhabitants and is situated on natural heightened land which is called the Hondsrug. The village is part ...

) was a Dutch artist, active as painter, watercolorist, draftsman, pastelist, lithographer, and academy lecturer.Herman Mees; male / Netherlandish; painter, watercolorist, draftsman, pastelist, lithographer, academy lecturer
at rkd.nl, 2015. He was specialized in

portrait painting Portrait Painting is a genre in painting, where the intent is to represent a specific human subject. The term 'portrait painting' can also describe the actual painted portrait. Portraitists may create their work by commission, for public and pr ...

Life and work

Mees, son of the physician Willem Mees and Geertruida Hermina Oving, moved in 1897 with his family from Veendam to

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

. There he passed his exams for the Hogere Burgerschool in 1899. He studied architecture at the Polytechnic School in Delft for one year in 1900, attended the

Rijksakademie The Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten (State Academy of Fine Arts) was founded in 1870 in Amsterdam. It is a classical academy, a place where philosophers, academics and artists meet to test and exchange ideas and knowledge. The school support ...

in Amsterdam from 1901 to 1903, and in 1902-1903 also the Academy of Visual Arts in Rotterdam, and the Academy of Fine Arts in The Hague from 1904 to 1905. In The Hague he graduated in 1905, obtaining a teacher diploma for secondary drawing education. He had studied under

August Allebé August Allebé (19 April 1838 – 10 January 1927) was an artist and teacher from the Northern Netherlands. His early paintings were in a romanticism, romantic style, but in his later work he was an exponent of realism (arts), realism and impress ...

and Willem van Konijnenburg. Mees was interested in

theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

. The theosophical philosophy prescribed a simple life without much needs. After obtaining this degree, he went out into the world. After wandering in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

and

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

, he settled in London, where the headquarters of the Theosophical movement were located. There he met Arthur Ayliffe with whom he had many philosophical debates. He spent much time in the London parks, making hundreds of pencil sketches and pencil studies. In 1914 Mees moved to Spain, but soon had to flee because of the war. In 1917 Mees accepted a position as a teacher at the Rotterdam Art Academy, now Willem de Kooning Academy. The Academy gave him the first years annual five-month study break. He stayed mainly in Italy and Spain. In 1924 Mees was promoted head lecturer of the Rotterdam Academy, where he remained in service until 1943. Mees' work was included in the 1939 exhibition and sale ''

Onze Kunst van Heden Onze Kunst van Heden (Contemporary Artists/Our Art of Today) was an exhibition held in the winter of 1939 through 1940 at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Due to the threat of invasion in the years leading up to World War II, the Netherlands' go ...

'' (Our Art of Today) at the

Rijksmuseum The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the St ...

in Amsterdam. Mees became known for his portraits of Utrecht professors and Rotterdam businessmen and harbor barons. He also painted many portraits of children. He was a member of the

Pulchri Studio Pulchri Studio (Latin:"For the study of beauty") is a Dutch art society, art institution and art studio based in The Hague ('s-Gravenhage), Netherlands. This institute began in 1847 at the home of painter Lambertus Hardenberg. Since 1893 the c ...

. Mees visited various exhibitions to keep abreast of new developments in art. At the age of 80, he traveled with his wife to

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

to paint portraits there. Eventually he spent his last years in

. He died there on 28 November 1964. In appreciation for his life's work in 1951 Mees received the first ''Penning van de Leuve,'' which was awarded by the Rotterdam Art Foundation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mees, Herman 1880 births 1964 deaths 20th-century Dutch painters Dutch male painters Willem de Kooning Academy alumni Royal Academy of Art, The Hague alumni Academic staff of Willem de Kooning Academy People from Veendam 20th-century Dutch male artists