Expressive abstract relief in white by Dutch artist Henk van Putten (1936-2019)

Van Putten called himself a constructivist in the tradition of Vladimir Tatlin, with whom he shared not only aesthetic principles but also social commitment.  For example, almost everything he made in 3D is made up of several parts; glued, welded or screwed together. In his paintings, which he often made prior to the 3D version, he even painted the seams where they would appear in the later work. Van Putten’s work, although easily recognisable, shows a clear affinity with artists he admires such as André Volten, Gerrit Rietveld and more generally with ‘De Stijl’. Yet he made no contact with them; he felt much more like a kindred spirit of German artists, especially the ZERO movement whose members, like himself, were strongly involved in society. He befriends people like Egon Eppich and Hap Grieshaber, one of the founders of ZERO.

This specific Relief was intended, just like his other reliefs, to become an edition of 6. However, the others were never executed so this is the only example.

“Metronomic Motion:, signed and dated verso
Medium: oil on board,
Provenance: Private collection, NL