Exactly where would you go to see traditional folk art in Europe? On a recent trip to the Netherlands and Norway, I found some exciting collections that inspired me to return home and create marvellous new designs and colour schemes.

HINDELOOPEN

Unless you are lucky enough to sail directly into its harbour, it will take you several hours and more than a few changes of trains to reach the small Dutch village of Hindeloopen in the Northern Netherland province of  Friesland.  As you alight, as I did, at the small and deserted railway station, be prepared to feel a stab of disappointment as Hindeloopen itself is not immediately visible to the weary traveller, and it seems the only residents assigned to the local “meet and greet” service, are some rather indulgent-looking cows!  When the village proper is reached, the traveller begins a journey back to the 16^th Century, where Hanseatic traders plied cobblestone streets and canals, and sea Captains built unique homes with gabled facades, and decorated the interiors with elaborate forms of folk art painting, known as Hinderlooper.

HISTORY

Hindeloopen provided a safe harbour from the tyranny of the rough inland sea (the ZuiderZee), and as such it had always been an important trading centre with other nations in the Hanseatic league, and even the Far East since the 13^th century;

so it is no surprise the villager’s culture and art absorbed foreign influences. Even the language spoken in Hindeloopen, has more in common with Scandinavian dialects than it has with the Dutch language.

 Despite numerous economic setbacks to the maritime industry and many devastating floods, Hindeloopen continued to flourish until 1932. It was then that the Afsluitdijk was constructed, and the rough seas of the ZuyderZee were tamed at last. Unfortunately, this caused the rapid demise of maritime trade and forced the citizens to search for alternate sources of income. The unemployed sailors soon discovered that there was a market for traditional wooden objects painted in Hindeloopen style.

Today, the summer visitor to Hindeloopen will see grassy dykes along the ZuiderZee, dotted with grazing sheep, a harbour bustling with tourists and luxury yachts, colourful rowboats in Hindeloopen’s sleepy canals, gardens bursting with lush hydrangea blooms, but more significantly to the folk artist, an amazing collection of painted wares and studios.

PAINTING STUDIOS in HINDELOOPEN

Traditionally, the men of the village who paint; the woman and wives merely operate the shopfront, so my questions on the technical aspects of painting remained unanswered, but, on reflection, I thought this might inadvertently help protect this unique cottage industry from contemporary influences.

At the town’s hotel, I found examples of Hindelooper folk art including a Spinning wheel, a six-sided High Chair and a Bridal suite complete with “box- bed” in the wall.  Whilst dining at the nearby pancake cafe, I noticed every chair and table was painted in Hindelooper florals by Gauke Bootsma, who operates the neighbouring shop that is brimming with a stunning array of folk art.

Gauke Bootsma

The sheer quantity of works in Bootsma’s shop is absolutely overwhelming. Although his work is in a contemporary light, airy style called, ‘Basic Hindelooper’, his larger items, of furniture and serving trays are decorated with a detailed panel,

depicting village scenes, sailing boats, Hindeloopen Sluitshouse (Lock House) or Dutch windmills.  The shop’s display is

  themed around the traditional background colours of Hindelooper ie: one room  is     full of pieces painted on stained timber backgrounds; another has  monochromatic white designs, on dark blue, another, designs on green backgrounds,     whilst still another has Hindelooper motifs painted on white and mid-blue  backgrounds.

Whilst browsing the many cabinets, wine racks, gate-leg tables, milk cans and smaller items in this shop, I spotted the artist, (who was once destined for a career in seafaring like his Harbourmaster father), hard at work upstairs in his studio, producing yet another beautiful Hindelooper item.

Harmen Zweed

Directly opposite the town’s Hotel, is the studio of Harmen Zweed who paints in the Classic style.  There is a ‘must see’ door lavishly decorated with biblical motifs, fruit, detailed flowers and scrolls, painted with a translucency and illusion of depth not seen in the Basic style.  The six-sided traditional high chair gives the visitor a hint of what the Zweed’s kitchen must be like, which is painted completely in Hindelooper .

According to Jenny, (the painter’s wife), who operates the shop, there are ten colours traditionally used in Hindelooper painting, with the predominant floral motifs being the Dogrose, Star flower and Carnation, but tulips may sometimes be used.

You will find several other painting studios in Hindeloopensuch as Iekoon and Meine Visser's shop. Het Roosje’s studio, established in 1894, almost a museum in itself, contains expertly painted stair-stools for alcove wall-beds and furniture, but also specialises in woodcarving.  

Harmen Glashower’s stunning painting is impressively detailed, but his shop is open only upon request, although I did find him working in the nearby Dutch Fabric shop. The shop stocks the traditional chintz fabrics used in the Hindeloopen folk costumes, and has a photographic catalogue of Glashower’s painted work available for browsing.

HISTORIC FOLK ART in MUSEUMS

The Museum Hidde Nijland Foundation located in the Town Hall (circa 1683), is the place to view Hindeloopen’s painting heritage. Not only is there an enthralling collection of colourful tines, bowls, and cupboards, but also furniture and staircases for wall-beds, dating back to the 17^th and 18^th Century.  My personal favourite was a wall panel in blue on a

white background, with bird and floral motifs. I noted a faux marble finish was often incorporated into the rim or side of an object. The display of traditional and brightly coloured folk costumes and Dutch tiles are inspirational in colour and design.

If you travel to this part of Holland by train, you must change trains at the nearby town of Leeuwarden, and the museum there is also worth a stop to see some larger examples of folk art.

FOLK TALES

During my journey to Hindeloopen, a Dutch-born Frisian artist who had immigrated to Australia after W.W.II, told me how each Friesland village developed their own peculiar art form. (Workum for example, specialised in Earthenware, Hindeloopen – costumes and painting, Makkum – pottery, and Leeuwarden – tiles)  Furthermore, he entertained me with old seafaring legends about these flourishing seaside villages.  

One interesting tale began with a Sea Captain from Stavoren, (a village close to Hindeloopen), who wanted to impress a pretty girl from his village. Whenever the sailor returned home from his journeys to the Far East, he would bring the lady exotic gifts from his travels. In return she promised the Captain, her hand in marriage, if he was able to bring her something new and unique, when he returned from his next voyage. Searching far and wide, the Sea Captain found a grain, the colour of pure gold. Confident that this would impress the lady, he filled his ship to the brim with the golden grain, and returned triumphantly home, to claim her hand in marriage.

Sadly, the pretty lady rejected his gift and refused to marry him.  The sailor was so saddened, he emptied all of the ‘golden grain’ into the town’s harbour, causing the harbour of Stavoren to silt up. Trading ships were no longer able to moor in its waters and the town’s prospects declined sharply. The legend has it that the pretty girl, died penniless, and of course, without her sailor. This story symbolizes the unpredictable and fluctuating economies of the maritime villages of the former Zuiderzee and the citizen’s attempts to explain misfortune.

DELFT

Before leaving Holland, I visited Delft, another town renowned for its painting. Well preserved since the 17^th Century,

Delft is famous as the birthplace of the painter, Vermeer, and home to the exquisite ‘Delft Blue’ earthenware.

I took an English speaking tour at the Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles, the Delftware factory dating back to 1653, (the Dutch Golden Age). Not only did I see magnificent Delft Blue antiques, (even in the ladies toilets), but I got to watch the artists at work, painting new earthenware plates and vases. It was interesting to note that prior to painting, the artist traces the designated pattern in carbon, using strategically placed dots, made through holes in the tracing.  The designs are painted in black paint, and the firing process burns off the carbon dots, and changes the black paint to the familiar Delft blue colour. If you wish to purchase a hand-painted souvenir, take plenty of money, as it is very expensive.

The Netherlands’ vast legacy of decoration, both on earthenware and wood is a wonderful inspiration to contemporary folk artists. However, it is also useful to delve further back in history and examine the influences that facilitated the development of Dutch folk art. For it is not only the Indian and Oriental world that inspired Dutch painters, but more significantly, the Scandinavian world with whom the Dutch were trading partners.   In another article, I travel to Norway to examine the wonderful examples of both historic and modern Norwegian folk art and study its development.

Amanda McLaughlin copyright 2005

Further links of interest pertaining to the content of this article:

http://www.meinevisser.nl/

http://www.destadsboerderij.nl/en/

http://www.hindeloopen.com/sitemap.html

http://www.hindeloopen.com/hindeloopenart.html