Harrie Kuyten

Dutch painter Harrie Kuyten was a scholar of Simon Mengelberg in Utrecht and subsequently studied at the Royal Academy of Arts in Antwerpen. Later he travelled extensively to various countries including Scandinavia and Austria-Hungary. He was a graphic artist, painter, draftsman, lithographer and wood carver. His style was Impressionistic, but was influenced by French Fauvism. Kuyten mainly painted a variety of topics, including trees, animals, harbor scenes, interiors, landscapes, nudes, cityscapes, still lifes and portraits. In the late 1920s he becomes a representative of the so-called Bergense School, characterized by an expressionist style showing influences of cubism and a preference for darker colors.

His submitted work Swimming and Navigation is shown in the catalog of art competitions. The sporting press had very negative reviews, claiming that it is “clumsily conceived, the color dull and powerless, and [that] many will eventually call it a caricature of the wonderful, courageous water sport.”