HANS VAN DE BOVENKAMP

Since Van de Bovenkamp completed his first major corporate commission over 35 years ago, this highly respected sculptor has produced an enduring body of work. He is extensively shown and collected worldwide. His sensuous, undulating fabricated bronze or stainless works ("the bridge between architecture and nature") show meticulous technical skill.

A Dutchman and a youthful immigrant to the United States, Hans Van de Bovenkamp was a part of the avant-guard Tenth Street scene in the New York City of the 1960s, an adherent of Abstract Expressionism, and has maintained residences in upstate New York and Sagaponack in the Hamptons. Van de Bovenkamp has earned an international reputation in the past 50 years for designing, fabricating, and installing over 100 unique commissioned sculptures in collaboration with architects, cities, museums, and private individuals. His works can be seen in public, civic, corporate and private collections. Recent solo exhibitions include Bridge Gardens in Southhampton, Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ, and the Danubiana Meulensteen Museum, Bratislava, Slovakia.

After studying architecture in the Netherlands and then graduating from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Van de Bovenkamp began showing his sculpture in New York (New York University, Tiffany's, 10 Downtown, Bryant Park), Houston, TX (Contemporary Arts Museum), Stamford, CT (Stamford Museum, The University of Connecticut), and in several other states. He quickly gained recognition for his large-scale abstract works in bronze, stainless steel, painted steel, or aluminum, and began receiving large commissions for corporate, private, and public collections as early as 1964, the year he received the Emily Lowe Memorial Award. For the next twenty-five years, Van de Bovenkamp’s work was shown in Italy, Lebanon, Venezuela, Switzerland, Canada, and was featured in ten museum, embassy, and sculpture center shows. His work was also displayed at numerous universities, public gardens and institutes. Today, Van de Bovenkamp’s sculpture is widely displayed in galleries throughout Europe and the US.

His undulating abstract forms of varying width and depth often contrast with clean circles or thrusts of vertical shapes to offer accomplished compositions of impressive grace. "Most of my shapes are soft and round: they are very feminine and sensuous, I hope. But I craft them in stainless steel so hard that knives can be made from it."

Inspired by myths, the collective consciousness, and subliminal learning, Van de Bovenkamp has been described as an artist-mystic whose work -- with its signature power, lyricism, and grand proportions -- heightens the viewer's sense of imagination and discovery. “I like dreams, myths and mythology," says the sculptor, who has been influenced by the work of Joseph Campbell, the cultural anthropologist. "I find myself working towards an art which includes a spiritual dimension. I have become increasingly aware of art as a dialogue between matter and spirit. In recent works, I have emphasized myth, symbol and dream to evoke an atmosphere in which the sculpture and its environment speak to the subconscious to make the observer aware of the dreamlike nature of life, of which we all are part.”

A recently published, 160-page book spanning the artist’s 40-year career is available from Hudson Hills Press. Foreword by Steve Larsen, Introduction by Phyllis Braff and Essay by Donald Kuspit.

Selected Solo Exhibitions
2013 Adelphi University Performing Arts Center Gallery, Garden City, NY
2012 Lyceum Gallery, Northampton, NY
2011 Louis Meisel Gallery, New York, NY
2011 Bernarducci Meisel Gallery, New York, NO
2008 Goldman Warehouse, Wynwood District, Miami, FL
2007 Yellow Bird Gallery, Newburgh , NY
2007 Sculpturesite Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2007 Basel Miami Art Fair, with Goldman Warehouse, Miami, FL
2007 Basel Miami Art Fair, with Gary Nader Fine Art, Miami, FL
2007 Auberge du Soleil, Napa, CA
2006 Danubiana Meulensteen Museum, Bratislava, Slovakia
2005-2006 Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ
2003 Louis Meisel Gallery, New York, NY
2003 Berarducci Meisel Gallery, New York, NY
2003 Sagaponack Sculpture Fields, New York, NY
1996 Michener Museum, Doyles Town, PA
1996 Camino Real Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
1994 Quietude Gallery, East Brunswick, NJ
1993 Elaine Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
1992 Shidoni Contemporary Gallery, Tesuque, NM
1981 Tiffany's, New York, NY
1981 University of Missouri, Columbia, MO
1979 Sculpture Center, New York, NY
1976 Brooklyn Borough Hall, New York, NY
1976 Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, NY
1970 Jacksonville Children's Museum, Jacksonville, FL
1968 10 Downtown, New York, NY
1965 Glassboro State College, Glassboro, NJ
1963 New York University, New York, NY
1961 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

Selected Group Exhibitions
2015 "Vernissage," Sculpturesite Gallery, Glen Ellen, CA
2010-2015 "sculptureWALK," a new leaf gallery | sculpturesite, Sonoma, CA
2014 Philippe Limited Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan
2014 "Van de Bovenkamp and Vaadia," Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL
2014 "In Bronze: Erdman, Meadmore, Van de Bovenkamp," Sculpturesite Gallery, Sonoma, CA
2013 Season of Scupture VII, Sarasota, FL
2012 Adelphi University Outdoor Sculpture Biennial, Garden City, NY
2012 Bridge Gardens, Bridgehampton, NY
2012 Mark Borghi Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
2012 Elaine Baker Ballery (now BakerSponder), Boca Raton, FL
2011 Shanghai Art Fair, Shanghai, China
2011 Gary Nader, Miami, FL
1996-2011 Elena Zang, Woodstock, NY
1994-2011 Cavalier Gallery, Greenwich, CT
2010 Southampton Cultural Center, Southampton, NY
2010 San Francisco Art Fair, with Sculpturesite Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2010 FADA LA Art Show, with Sculpturesite Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2009 Spanierman Gallery, East Hampton, NY
2009 Three Person Exhibit, Jonathan Novak Gallery, Century City, CA
2009 ArtHampton, with Meulensteen Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
2009 Miami Basel Art Fair, Miami, FL.
2009 Cavalier Gallery, Stamford, CT
2009 Pam Williams Gallery, Amagansett, NY
2009 "Sculptures on the Plaza," Sculpturesite Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1999-2009 Shidoni Contemporary Gallery, Tesuque, NM
1995-2009 Kouros Sculpture Garden, Ridgefield, CT
2008 ArtHampton, with Louis Meisel Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
2008 Sculpture Walk, Gettysburg, PA
2007 40 Years of Central Park, Lincoln Center, New York, NY
2007 Pratt Institute, New York, NY
2006 Camino Real Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
2006 Danubiana Meulensteen Museum, Bratislava, Slovakia
2006 Westchester Sculptor’s Guild, White Plains, NY
2005-2006 Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ
2005 "Vernissage," Sculpturesite Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2005 Hillwood Art Museum, Brookville, NY
2000-2004 City of Fort Lauderdale, FL
2000-2004 Arlene Bujese Gallery, Ease Hampton, NY
2003 ACA Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
2003 David Floria Gallery, Aspen, NM
2003 Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY
2003 Louis Meisel Gallery, New York, NY
2003 Bernarducci Meisel Gallery, New York, NY
2003 Sagaponack Sculpture Fields, Sagaponack, NY
2002 Albright College Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
1999 Long Beach Museum, Long Beach, NJ
2000 City of Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1999 Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ
1996-1999 Lever House, New York, NY
1969-1999 Elaine Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
1997 Dorothy Blau Gallery, Bay Harbor, FL
1996 Stamford Museum, Stamford, CT
1996 Michener Museum, Doylestown, PA
1990-1996 Lowe Gallery, Atlanta, GA
1994 Cavalier Gallery, Stamford, CT
1993 Cast Iron Gallery, New York, NY
1982-1993 Bologna-Landi Gallery, East Hampton, NY
1988-1991 Shidoni Contemporary Gallery, Tesuque, NM
1987-1989 Nina Owen Limited, Chicago, IL
1988 Chicago Art Fair, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL
1987 Hudson River Museum, Sculptors Guild, Yonkers, NY
1986 Ann Norton Sculpture Garden, West Palm Beach, FL
1985-1986 Kouros Gallery, New York, NY
1984 Molly Barnes Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1982 Oakland Museum, Oakland, CA
1981 Artists Representing Environmental Art, Shidoni Gallery, Tesuque, NM
1978 PS1 Contemporary Art Museum, Queens, NY
1978 Nassau County Art Museum, NY
1978 Medici Berenson Gallery, Miami, FL
1978 The United States Mission, New York, NY
1977-1978 Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
1977 National Academy of Design, New York, NY
1976 American Institute of Arts & Letters, New York, NY
1973-1976 Storm King Art Center, Cornwall, NY
1970 University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
1969 Medici Berenson Gallery, Miami, FL
1969 New York Sculptors Guild, Bryant Park, New York, NY
1968 Loeb Student Center, New York University, New York, NY
1968 Picker Gallery, Charles A. Dana Creative Arts Center, Colgate University, Hamilton, NY
1968 Stamford Museum, Stamford, CT
1965 Glassboro State College, Glassboro, NJ
1964 Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, TX
1963 New York University, New York, NY

Selected Corporate Collections
2014 W. R. Grace Building, New York, NY
2011 Louis Meisel, Watermill, NY
2009 Manhattan House, New York, NY
2009 Phelps Dodge Corporation, Old Greenwich, CT
2006 Le Jardin, Atlanta, GA
2005 Stamford, CT
2001 Corporate Business Park, Columbia, MD
2001 Neiman Marcus, San Diego, CA; Honolulu, HI
2000 Neiman Marcus, Denver, CO; Houston, TX
1997-1999 Neiman Marcus, Beverly Hills, CA
1997 The Klein Group, Philadelphia, PA
1996 Neiman Marcus, Paramus, NY
1995 Litwin Building, Wall Street, New York, NY
1995 Goldman Properties, 110 Greene Street, New York, NY
1995 Neiman Marcus, Miami, FL
1994 Neiman Marcus, Dallas, TX; Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1993 Mayer Collection, Denver, CO
1992 Hyatt Regency, Paris, France
1990 Marina Village, Alameda, CA
1989 The Fox Companies, Wayne, PA
1988 Amli Realty Corporation, Chicago, IL
1988 Robert Martin Company, White Plains, NY
1986 Haverstraw marina, Haverstraw, NY
1984 Christiania, Tarrytown, NY
1980 Litwin Building, 72nd & 2nd Avenue, New York, NY
1977 Cargill, Minneapolis, MN
1967 Gaslight Tower, Atlanta, GA
1966 Georgetown Plaza Building, New York, NY
1966 Levitt Headquarters, Lake Success, NY
Dorado Beach Hotel, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Plaza Las Americas, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Selected Museum Collections
Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ
Danubiana Meulensteen Museum, Bratislava, Slovakia
Miami University Art Museum, Oxford, OH
Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL
Estate of Nelson Rockefeller, Kykuit, NY
Lowe Art Museum, Coral Gables, FL
Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH

Selected University Collections
City University of New York, Staten Island Community College, Staten Island, NY
Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Towson University Art Center, Towson, MD
University of Missouri, Columbia, MO
Wheeling Jesuit University, Wheeling, WV

Selected Municipal Collections
Jing'an Park, Shanghai, China
City of Toledo, Toledo, OH
Mt. Sinai Hospital, Miami, FL
Myriad Gardens, Oklahoma City, OK
City of Ormond Beach, FL
City Hall, Voorhees, NJ
State Capitol Plaza, Lansing, MI
I-80 Nebraska Bicentennial, Sidney, NE
Jewish Institute for Geriatrics Care, Lake Success, NY

Selected Awards
2003 Best Sculpture Award, Guild Hall, East Hampton, New York
1996-2004 Listing, "Who's Who in American Art"
1996 Sanctuary Design Competition, Omega Holistic Health Institute, Rhinebeck, NY
1976 American Institute Arts & Letters, New York, NY
1976 Nebraska Bicentennial Sculpture Competition, Sydney, NE
1964 Emily Lowe Memorial Sculpture Award, New York, NY

Selected Professional Associations
Advisory Board, Omega Institute
Advisory Board, Institute for Symbolic Studies
Member, New York Sculptors' Guild
Member, International Sculpture Center
Member, Royal Society of British Sculptors

Film Documentation
1995 “Art Farm,” Nat Boxer
1988 “Hans Van de Bovenkamp,” John Frank
1988 “Tillson Farm,” The University of Missouri
1972 “Barn on the Road,” New York University

Film Archives
1989 Allan/Lavalin Art Show, Montreal, Canada (Dorothy Gillespy)
1988 AMLI Installation, Itasca, IL
1988 “Hans’s 50th Birthday Party”
1998 Installation Trinity, Kingston, NY
1988 MoosArt Gallery, Miami, FL
1987 City Hall, City of Voorhees, NJ
1986 Documentary, Meredith La Port, Channel 17, Miami, FL
1986 Menos Sculpture Installation, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
1986 Shidoni Gallery, Tesuque, NM

Education
1958 School of Architecture, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
1958-1961 BS, Science and Design, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

Landscape, architecture and sculpture: I think they all go together. In creating a large sculpture, I focus on its interaction with the entire outdoors: the relationship...the bridge between architecture and nature. Sculpture is a landmark. It is a window to introspection.