Biography

Biography

Ger Dekker was born in Alkmaar, the Netherlands, on October 22, 1943; the Second World War was at its height. He also spent his childhood years in this city; during high school (gymnasium) he met his life partner, Annelie Roozen, his muse. From an early age Ger felt strongly attracted to the visual arts. After high school he went to the Academy of Fine Arts in Tilburg at a young age. He moved to Amsterdam and continued his education at the Rijksakademie. There he graduated in 1972 from the Painting Department on the subject of Visual Arts in Relation to Architecture and Urban Planning. This combined theme characterizes the entire subsequent course of his artistic life.

Ger Dekker has not made any figurative work since his graduation. His early work was strongly inspired by De Stijl, with big names such as Gerrit Rietveld, Theo van Doesburg and Piet Mondriaan. Over the years, his work develops from a certain non-figurative expressionism to an increasingly minimal, abstract geometry. The configuration of the various images is carefully constructed, in which the Sectio Divina (golden ratio) plays an important role. Then, with great precision and tenacity, layer upon layer, touch by touch, the right intensity of the color and the right nature of the paint skin is sought.

A large part of his career took place in Amsterdam, where the couple also lived. They lived very close to all the well-known museums, such as the Rijksmuseum, van Gogh-museum and Stedelijk Museum. In the year 2000 Ger and Annelie moved to Egmond-Binnen, and moved into Annelie's parental home, in the middle of the bulb fields, and the beautiful North-Holland dunes. A large studio was built. Every morning at 6:30 they went for a long walk on the nearby beach; the colors and surfaces in this environment formed an important inspiration, which can be found in the works of that time. Ger Dekker’s paintings were exhibited a.o. in Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Bergen (NL).

Ger Dekker also worked as a teacher at the Rietveld Akademie in Amsterdam (1979-2005) and at the Faculty of Architecture at Technical University of Delft (1998-2000). The combination between visual art and architecture and urban planning also took shape in the many assignments to beautify the public space. In addition, he was appointed special advisor for the Chief Government Architect (1990-1993).

Shortly after the death of his beloved Annelie on June 7, 2019, Ger Dekker passed away on February 18, 2020. This website was created by Ger and Annelie's cousin, Lukas Dekker, together with his wife, Nanne Schuiveling. They take care of the legacy. Ger Dekker was a very modest, hard-working artist and his beautiful work merits much more admirers. For further information please send a message to foundation@gerdekker.com