The Willem de Kooning Academy ( nl, Willem de Kooning Academie) is a Dutch academy of media,

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

, leisure and education based in

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 ...

. It was named after one of its most famous alumni, Dutch fine artist

Willem de Kooning Willem de Kooning (; ; April 24, 1904 – March 19, 1997) was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist artist. He was born in Rotterdam and moved to the United States in 1926, becoming an American citizen in 1962. In 1943, he married painter El ...

Overview

The Willem de Kooning Academy is the art school of

and part of the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (RUAS). It is regarded as one of the most prestigious art schools in the country and no. 1 in advertising and copywriting. Previously called the Academie van Beeldende Kunsten (Academy of Visual Arts), it has since 1998 carried the name of alumnus

(1904–1997). Willem de Kooning was born in north Rotterdam and graduated in decoration art (now styling). He went to New York at the age of 22 and became a frontman of the

Abstract Expressionism Abstract expressionism is a post–World War II art movement in American painting, developed in New York City in the 1940s. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve international influence and put New York at the center of the ...

painting movement of the 1940s and 1950s. The academy's postgraduate programmes are housed in the

Piet Zwart Institute The Piet Zwart Institute is a post-graduate institute for study and research in art, media and design based in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Named in memory of the Dutch designer Piet Zwart, it was inaugurated in 2001. The current postgraduate study p ...

, named after faculty alumnus

Piet Zwart Piet Zwart (; 28 May 1885 – 24 September 1977) was a Dutch photographer, typographer, and industrial designer. Biography Early life Piet Zwart was born on May 28, 1885 in Zaandijk. He trained as an architect, and began graphic design proje ...

(1885–1977). Zwart designed stamps, print advertising, books, interiors, furniture (including the Bruynzeel kitchen) in the 1920s and also spent time photographing and painting. He has been officially awarded the title Dutch Designer of the 20th Century. The academy is proud of de Kooning and Zwart, two artists far ahead of their time, who inspire both students and faculty.

History

The roots of the art academy in Rotterdam go back to 1773, when a group of Rotterdam artists around the marine painter

Hendrik Kobell Hendrik Kobell (13 September 1751 – 3 August 1779) was an 18th-century landscape and marine painter, etcher, draftsman and watercolorist from the Northern Netherlands. Biography He came from a painting family and was a cousin of Ferdinand ...

founded the drawing society ''Tekengenootschap Hierdoor tot Hooger''. In those days drawing societies and academies were founded in many Dutch cities. According to Knolle (2014), these were "instances where new ideas about the production and function of art were developed, exchanged and put into practice. New arrived painters practiced themselves in the evening in drawing from the nude; young apprentice artists and craftsmen received drawing education; other enthusiasts developed their sense for art, for a better life, but also to judiciously collect—preferably Dutch—art." In 1781, the drawing society was turned into a public academy: the ''Rotterdamse Academie''. In addition to earlier programmes, there were now classes in engineering, perspective theory, anatomy and art philosophy. The academy also kept acting as a meeting place for discussion with 303 members in 1808, while at the education counted 45 pupils. In 1822 the academy was renamed ''Stadstekenschool voor de Bouwkunde'', and in 1832 renamed to ''Volksindustrieschool''. In 1851 the ''Academie van Beeldende Kunsten en Technische Wetenschappen'' was founded from the merger of the ''Rotterdamse Tekengenootschap'' and the ''Rotterdamse Industrieschool''. It was located in a building at the Coolvest, now

Coolsingel Coolsingel is a street in central Rotterdam. It is located in the Cool district. The street leads from the Hofplein to the Churchillplein. Plans were announced in 2016 to reduce traffic congestion on the street. The redevelopment is expected to ...

, and headed by Jan Hendrik van de Laar (1807–1874).Scheen, Pieter A. "Laar, Jan Hendrik van de," in: ''Lexicon Nederlandse beeldende kunstenaars, 1750-1880,'' 1981, p. 299. The school had two divisions, namely division A, where the arts classes were taught, and division B, which was technically oriented. In 1970 the school was renamed ''Academie van Beeldende Kunsten'', and finally ''Willem de Kooning Academie'' in 1998.

Programmes

The Willem de Kooning Academy offers 13 full-time majors and 1 part-time major programme, leading to a bachelor's degree. The programmes are: Fine Art, Photography, Advertising, Animation, Audiovisual Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Lifestyle Transformation Design, Fashion Design, Product Design, Spatial Design and Fine Art & Design Teacher Training (full-time and part-time). The academy also offers a Double Degree programme titled RASL in conjunction with the Eramus University Rotterdam (EUR). On top of a major, students are able to choose from a wide variety elective minors. It will introduce them to the three graduation profiles: Autonomous Practices, Social Practices and Commercial Practices. As of present there is also an honours programme for students seeking further development within theory and practice. The

consist of 4 full-time postgraduate programmes leading to master's degree: Design, Fine Art, Interior Architecture: Research + Design, Media Design (Experimental Publishing & Lens-Based) and Education in Arts. The institute is highly selective with each of the programmes, only admitting 10 to 12 students annually.

Location

Overzicht rechterzijgevel - Rotterdam - 20342801 - RCE

The Willem de Kooning Academy is located at Blaak 10 and Wijnhaven 61, two adherent buildings connected with an airbridge. Blaak 10 has always been regarded as the "home base" of the academy. Due to expansion and increase of students enrolling, the adherent Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences' building behind Wijnhaven 61) became entirely occupied by the academy in September 2007. In addition, the already existing programme Leisure Management moved to the academy campus. In the last couple of years, the academy had had a complete make-over in line with its renewed curriculum. Education is now based around state-of-the-art stations. Stations are not the "property" of any particular major, minor or practice, but are a meeting place for students and teachers across subjects and years. Here you can find all the expertise and facilities (hard- and software) that you need to carry out your work. Students have access to the following stations: Interaction Station, Image & Sound Station, Publication Station, Material Station, Drawing Station, Business Station and Research Station.

Young talent

(Former) students participate in a wide variety of national and international contests, initiatives and programmes. Here is an incomplete overview: SpinAwards Young Talent Show, North Sea Jazz Art Poster Competition, Creative Press Challenge, Dutch Design Awards, Maaskantprijs, Onderzoeksprijs, Steenbergen Stipendium, Drempelprijzen, HEMA ontwerpwedstrijd, BAD Award, Henri Winkelman Award, Woolmark Prize, One Show, VEED Awards, YoungGuns International Award, Volkskrantprijs, Kunstprijs Binnenmaas, Art Rotterdam, Stimuleringsprijs DBKV and Best in Show Award.

Notable alumni

Per Abramsen Pieter (Per or Perry) Abramsen (Rotterdam, 27 March 1941 – Rotterdam, 13 March 2018) was a Dutch sculptor, and visiting professor at the Delft University of Technology, known for his work in which abstraction and realism are joined.Hans Baaij.B ...

(1941) *

Woody van Amen Wilhelmus Josephus (Woody) van Amen (Eindhoven August 26, 1936) is a Dutch sculptor (artist), sculptor, Painting, painter and collage artist. Education Van Amen studied at the Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam Academy. His teachers included ...

(1936) * Boris van Berkum (1968) * Henk de Bouter (1968) *

Machiel Brandenburg Machiel Brandenburg (4 May 1907 in Rotterdam – 30 May 1984 in Cape Town) was a painter and drawing artist. Brandenburg studied until 1929 at the Academie van Beeldende Kunsten en Technische Wetenschappen, now the Willem de Kooning Academy. He ...

(1907–1984) * Hendrik Chabot (1894–1949) * Wim Chabot (1907–1977) * Simone Dettmeijer (1944) * Dora Dolz (1971) *

Kees van Dongen Cornelis Theodorus Maria "Kees" van Dongen (26 January 1877 – 28 May 1968) was a Dutch-French painter who was one of the leading Fauves. Van Dongen's early work was influenced by the Hague School and symbolism and it evolved gradually into a r ...

(1877–1968) *

Frans van Eijk Frans is an Afrikaans, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, and Swedish given name, sometimes as a short form of ''François''. One cognate of Frans in English is '' Francis''. Given name * Frans van Aarssens (1572–1641), Dutch diplo ...

(1938) *

Ron van der Ende Ron van der Ende (born 1965) is a Dutch visual artist, who works as sculptor, installation artist, and video artist.Mathieu Ficheroux Matheus Josephus Lambertus (Mathieu) Ficheroux (22 April 1926 - 11 October 2003) was a Dutch artist, who worked as sculptor, glass painter, painter, draftsman, wall painter and installation artist.

(1926-2003) *

Wout van Heusden Wouter Bernard (Wout) van Heusden (25 September 1896 in Rotterdam – 9 July 1982 in Rotterdam) was a Dutch graphic artist, who also worked as etcher, lithographer, manufacturer of woodcuts, painter, draftsman, and painters.Willem Hussem Willem () is a Dutch and West FrisianRienk de Haan, ''Fryske Foarnammen'', Leeuwarden, 2002 (Friese Pers Boekerij), , p. 158. masculine given name. The name is Germanic, and can be seen as the Dutch equivalent of the name William in English, Gui ...

(1900–1974) *

Teun Jacob Teunis (Teun) Jacob (Rheden, 11 June 1927 - 12 October 2009) was a Dutch wall painter and sculptor, who lived and worked in Rotterdam since the early 1950s. He made both figure and nonrepresentational art. Live and work Born in Rheden, Jacob stu ...

(1927-2009) *

(1904–1997) *

Philip Kouwen Philip Kouwen (18 June 1922, in Rotterdam – 17 December 2002, in Warnsveld) was a Dutch artist notable for his graphic works, mostly landscapes and cityscapes which used grey color. Kouwen graduated from the Rotterdam Academy of Art. Rotterdam ...

* Cor Kraat (1946) * Herman Mees (1880–1964) *

Joep van Lieshout Joep van Lieshout (born 1963), is a Dutch artist and sculptor born in Ravenstein, Netherlands, and founder of Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL). Life and work Van Lieshout received his formal education and training from the Academy of Modern Art i ...

(1963) * Ton van Os (1941) * Don Satijn (1953) * Han Schuil (1958) *

Flor Silvester Florus "Flor" Silvester (30 August 1923 in Rotterdam – 2 December 2008 in Dordrecht), sometimes misspelled as Silvestre, was a Dutch graphic designer, illustrator, painter, and sculptor. Silverster's designs won him the Eurostar for pack ...

(1923–2008) * Frans van Straaten (1963) * Piet van Stuivenberg (1901–1988) *

Kees Torn Kees Torn (born 1967 in Oostburg) is a Dutch text writer and comedy performer. Career Torn started his cabaret performance in 1991, when he was studying at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam. As "Kees en Ik" (''Kees and I''), he performed ...

(1967) * Bik Van Der Pol (1959/1961) * Petrus van der Velden (1837–1913) * Willem van Veldhuizen (1954) * August Willem van Voorden (1881–1921) * Anton Vrede (1953) * Fiep Westendorp (1916–2004) *

(1885–1977)

References

External links

Willem de Kooning AcademyPiet Zwart InstituteHistory of The Academy (in Dutch)
{{Authority control Willem de Kooning Art schools in the Netherlands Buildings and structures in Rotterdam Articles containing video clips 1773 establishments in the Dutch Republic