René Van Der Klooster

René van der Klooster is multifaceted. Besides an author of poetry and plays (in Dutch and English) and prose (in Dutch), he practices visual arts, including drawing, painting and sculpting, moreover, formerly he worked as an architect and in that capacity he is currently designing lamps. The writing and the arts mainly originate from a vast dream world, a certain grip on the subconsciousness and frequent pre mystical and mystical experiences.

The subjects that originate from these experiences are mainly represented in linden wood panels with cut out reliefs that add an extra dimension of light and shade. He depicts profound subjects, while pouring his inner thoughts and emotions into each artwork using various additional technics, such as prints and inlay, and various materials, such as gold leaf and pour on varnish, that add significance to his artwork.

In 2017 he was with nine works a participant of the exhibition Beeldenstorm in the Abbey of Middelburg in the Netherlands.

In October 2019 he exhibited five works of art, w11, w12, w13, w22, w29, at the Art Shopping Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, represented by Mona Youssef Gallery.

Several of his works are published on ArteLagunaWorld/ArteLagunaPrize 2019/2020/2021
(including prices for several wood carvings and pen drawings):
https://artelaguna.world/artist/van-der-Klooste-Ren-5636/

In 2019 his poem The Lamb was published in VerbalArt, a global journal devoted to poets and poetry, in India. His poem A Song for our Souls and two artworks The Sleeping Leader and The Logos Triptych were published in Lethe Literature and Art Journal in Turkey.

In 2020 his poem The Road was published in Universal Oneness, An Anthology of Magnum Opus Poems, in India.

An interview with René van der Klooster by Liesbeth Labeur was published in the newspaper PZC in the series ATELIER, 19 maart 2020 in The Netherlands

In 2021 two of his poems, Glory Bound and God help me, I am, will be published in the global journal Verbal Art in India and his short play The Reality that Questions Itself Deep down inside will be published in Phenomenal Literature, also a journal in India.

René van der Klooster lives and works in The Netherlands.


Portfolio:

Wooden carving/mixed media

The methods and technics that are used in general, in the following steps: linden wood or plywood as the canvas / transference of the design onto the wood or it is directly drawn or painted onto the wood / carving the wood with a knife, chisels or electric tools / finishing it with additional techniques and materials: oil paint, industrial paint, acrylic paint; sand in oil paint carefully arranged; 2d print technique: transferring shades from a plastic sheet onto the wood using heat; 3d print technique: perforated stickers or cloth covered with oil paint, afterwards the sticker or the cloth will be removed leaving a 3d pattern; putty, filler, plaster, coloured plaster; gold leaf, copper leaf; pen, pencil, charcoal, felt pen, ink; inlay (different materials); pour on varnish, a varnish which is 40x thicker than normal varnish.

The Sleeping Leader “The Sleeping Leader”

Spontaneous subject that appeared while making a drawing directly onto the wooden panel.

The Great Spirit “The Great Spirit”

Based on a dream, possibly in connection with the following text by William Blake from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell: around were numbers of Eagle like men, who built places in the immense cliffs… and/or in connection with the meaning The Native Americans assign to the eagle as a symbol of The Great Spirit.

The Window on the Horizon “The Window on the Horizon”

The old woman represents mortality, the window opened on the horizon represents death and beyond.

The Logos Triptych “The Logos Triptych”

The center part is based on a dream. The other parts are derived from the center part.

The left part is an allegory of the psychic monism placed, like a Trojan Horse, within the dogmatism of monotheism.

The center part is an allegory of the energetic monism placed, like a Trojan Horse, within the dogmatism of polytheism (or rather henotheism).

The right part is an allegory of the psychic energetic monism placed, like a Trojan Horse, within the dogmatism of monism.

(psychic monism: merging of the psyche of everyone into one psyche (western notion of oneness))

(energetic monism: merging of the energy of everyone into one energy (eastern notion of oneness))

(psychic energetic monism: combination of both principles, merging of the eastern and western notions)

Before the Law “Before the Law”

Loosely based on the short story by Franz Kafka 'Vor dem Gesetz' (Before the Law).