Jan Henderikse

Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate, although the background tends more towards a soft cream in the original. Condition: This work is in good condition. There is evidence of light handling intermittently along the extreme outer edges. Close inspection reveals a few very thin, stable and unobtrusive hairline cracks isolated in places. There are two small green accretions towards the lower two corners, which are possibly inherent to the work's execution. Examination under ultraviolet light reveals a few spots of restoration to the corner tips and in a few isolated places towards the extreme outer edges.
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In 1961 Jan Henderikse co-founded the Dutch Nul group, along with Armando, Henk Peeters and Jan Schoonhoven, artists who were working within the international ZERO movement, founded by Heinz Mack, Otto Piene and Gunther Uecker in 1958. Testament to the importance of the group is its inclusion in the major and critically lauded ‘ZERO’ exhibitions at the Guggenheim in New York, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and at the Martin-Gropius-Bau in Berlin in recent years. In the words of curator Margriet Schavemake: "ZERO came about when a group of young artists resolved to shake off the pessimism and dreariness of the post-war years. Driven by a boundless sense of optimism, they were the largest artists’ network in history to change notions of art forever." (Press Release of Zero: Let Us Explore the Stars, Stedelijke Museum Amsterdam,  2015). Henderikse has regularly contributed to the influential ZERO magazine publication which was integral to the groups formation and placement in art history.

Henderikse uses whatever discarded media comes his way, from beer crates and license plates to money and cork. With these unorthodox materials he creates serial compositions without a clear narrative but can be seen as a critique of a society increasingly dedicated to mass production and consumption. The 2013 Guggenheim exhibition included Jan Henderikse’s re-creation of his iconic 1962 “Bottle Wall”: a barrier built of dozens of neatly stacked crates of bottled beer. This monumental work embodies the purism of the Zero movement in the same way Untitled does. Executed in 1969, Untitled is a stellar example of his sought after minimal work using coins. It unveils the artist’s, and by extension the Nul group’s, sensibility towards clean structure, removing the subjective and highlighting the objective.

Henderikse has exhibited in major museums such Centre Pompidou and Kunsthalle Düsseldorf and his work is included in major private collections as well as public institution collections such as the Stedelijke Museum in Amsterdam, Museum Kröller Müller in Otterlo, Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich and the Van Abbe Museum in Eindhoven.