Jan Toorop

Jan Toorop 1858-1928

1858-1879
Jan Toorop was born on 20 December in Poerworedjo, central Java. In 1869, his parents sent him to the Netherlands

1880
Is admitted to the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam and becomes a member of the
artist association St. Lucas

1882
Receives a scholarship from the Royal Household for three years. He leaves
with Antoon Derkinderen to Brussels, where he takes classes at the
Academy of Fine Arts

1883
Becomes the only Dutch member of Les Vingt. He works in Machelen, where he meets the young artist William Degouve de Nuncques, with whom he strikes up a lasting friendship

1884-1887
Meets the English Annie Hall, whom he marries in 1886. In addition to
impressionist works, he creates his first pointillist paintings

1889-1892
Moves to Katwijk, where the first symbolist works are created. Toorop founds the Haagsche Kunstkring with Th. De Bock and others

1893-1894
Move to The Hague. In 1894, he creates the famous poster for ‘Delftsche Slaolie

1897-1902
First summer in Domburg. An artists’ colony develops around Toorop, with artists such as Ferdinand Hart Nibbrig, Jan Heyse, Lucie van Dam van Isselt and Piet Mondriaan

1903-1908
Toorop converts to Roman Catholicism and receives a commission, among others, for a tile tableau in Haarlem’s St Bavo church

1909-1912
Moves to Nijmegen, where he receives many Catholic commissions. Toorop designed ‘tentoonstellingsgebouw’ – exhibition building rises in Domburg.

1927
Toorop becomes partially paralysed in 1927. Makes his last drawing ‘The Prayer’

1928
Jan Toorop dies on 3 March