Lieuwe van Gogh

Lieuwe van Gogh was born in Amsterdam, the son of Theo van Gogh and Heleen Hartmans. His father's great-grandfather Theo van Gogh was the brother of Vincent van Gogh.

At school Lieuwe preferred to draw rather than play soccer, starting with dragons.[4]

On the day his father was murdered, Lieuwe was in his classroom, a few hundred meters from where his father was shot. He was able to hear the gunshots.[5] The day after his father's murder he painted a graffiti mural at his mother's home, but this painting was largely removed after they moved out.[6] Van Gogh obtained his Havo diploma [2] and studied arts for two years. After this he became a Thaiboxer in South-East Asia.[2]

In 2014 Van Gogh donated living cells to artist Diemut Strebe for creating a "living artwork", a replica of Vincent van Gogh's severed ear.[7][8]

Van Gogh worked 10 years as a chef. During the pandemic lockdowns he developed his own painting style.[2][4] Successful sales during his first solo exposition made him realize that his work had value.[4]

The Bed-Stuy Art Residency invited Van Gogh to paint in New York in the summer of 2022, and expose his work.[2]

He now uses the mayonnaise bottles he used as a chef, to spray paint on horizontal canvasses.[1][4] This allows him to work fast, without watching paint dry. Lieuwe uses forks to create unusual eyelashes. [9] Art historian Jhim Lamoree describes Lieuwe's work as "vitalistic".[2]

• Official website