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The following biography is from the archives of askART.
Willem Dooyewaard was born on October 7, 1892 in Amsterdam. Dooyewaard left Holland at the age of 20 for Sumatra. He visited Indonesia in 1913 and 1919, and studied with Roland Strasser, an Austrian artist working in Bali. There, he created oil paintings of Balinese dance and culture. He became friendly with both Rudolf Bonnet and William Hofker, and was influenced by their works.
A quiet man with a strong urge to see the world he also travelled to Japan where he painted Geishas, and crossed the Gobi desert and Tibetan highlands on horseback during a two year trek in the mid-twenties. He also travelled and painted, later in life, in Southern France and North Africa.
Dooyewaard developed a unique and powerful artistic style influenced by his travels. His signature works of exotic cultures and figures are characterized by strong line, bold color and expressive details.
In 1930 he met his wife Jacoba in Japan. Returning to Holland in 1935 he shared a studio with his artist brother Jacob Dooyewaard, and remained a productive, highly disciplined artist until his death on July 17, 1980 in Blaricum.