About me

Most people remember through the stories they make of everyday events by retelling them. I remember things in a more unfiltered sequence of events with less context and more atmospheric feeling. My thoughts are more formed by images. Some of them I put in paintings or visual work. My artwork is my way of storytelling.

I paint and draw in a style that is quite primitive, raw, rough and not focused on the accurate representation of reality, but more of atmospheric feeling of space and subject. I work with a diversity of materials Gauche, Tempera, Ink and other materials.

My current subject is Artis (the city Zoo in Amsterdam). Already as a child I came regularly there with my family and for the “Artis Ateliers” (an institute that organizes art courses for children and adults). I went there from my 6th until I was 17 and this had a large impact on me and art work later on in my life. My subjects, most of the time, have their roots in memories and nostalgia of this period.

At the academy of art in Utrecht I picked up this subject again. It is not just about the animals. The shapes of their living environment are also playing an important role. These are often closed spaces with small openings that gives you the opportunity to have a peek into their world. The connection between the architecture and nature are elements that inspire me.

In my recent work the animals are more in the background. I have been focusing on science fiction and space traveling. I get my inspiration from the books i read from writers such as  Frank Harberd, Asimov, Arthur C.Clark and Larry Niven. And the recent rise in global interest in space travel such as the antics of Elon Musk, China, India, the Arabic Emirates, EU and USA.

curriculum vitae

Jaap Kamsma (1986)

Lives and works in Amsterdam (NL)

Solo exhibitions

2020 // Jaap Kamsma / Hotel Buiten / Amsterdam

2015 // Jaap Kamsma / Percipi Gallery / Amsterdam

Group exhibitions

2021// New Member Exhibition: UPDATE II / Arti et Amicitiae / Amsterdam

2020 // Salon 2020 / Arti et Amicitiae / Amsterdam

2019 // Open Ateliers Noord (OAN) / Amsterdam

2018 // Spacemakers / Galerie Pouloeuff  / Naarden

2018 // open Arteries Amsterdam noord / mijn atelier / Amsterdam

2017 // Summershow Niewe Dakota / Niewe Dakota / Amsterdam

2017 // Kersentuin / Kersgallery / KunstRai Art Amsterdam/ Amsterdam

2016 // LOCUS FOCUS / Academie galerie / Utrecht

2015 // SHOW WHAT YOU WANT SHOW 2 / Melkweg galerie / Amsterdam

2015 // Royal Club / Academie galerie / Utrecht

2015 // Piet’s pop-up Gallery / Dooyewaard Stichting / Blaricum

2015 // Koninklijke Prijs voor Vrije Schilderkunst 2015 / paleis op de dam / Amsterdam

2015 // Zomer reis /Galerie Pouloeuff / Naarden

2014 // Too the Zoo / Kersgallery / Amsterdam

2014 // Exposure / Graduation exhibition / Utrecht

Publications

2021 // Articula 19 // Arti et Amicitiae

2016 // LOCUS FOCUS Academie galerie

2015 // interview on the website of the Galerie Pouloeuff

2015 // by section in the newspaper Gooi en Eemlander

2014 // Graduation exhibition catalog HKU FA TWG 2014/ #16

Nominations

2015 // Royal Award for Modern Painting http://www.paleisamsterdam.nl/en/programme/royal-award/2015

2014 // dooyewaard stipendium/ Blaricum (won!!) http://www.dooyewaardstichting.nl/

Education

2009-2014 // Bachelor Fine Arts / Hogeschool voor de Kunsten / Utrecht (graduate with Honours)

2008-2009 // MBO Graphic designer / Media college Amsterdam (MA)/Amsterdam