Jan Cox (painter)
Encyclopedia
Jan Cox was a painter
who spent the largest part of his creative life in the United States
and Belgium
.
, publishing some of his art in the CoBrA magazine.
In 1950 he moved to New York
. After a brief stay in Rome
, he returned to the United States
in 1956, becoming head of the Painting Department at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts
.
In 1974 he returned to Belgium, to live in Antwerp, and devote himself exclusively to painting.
Jan Cox was psychically hyper-sensitive and suffered from recurrent depression throughout his life, eventually leading to his suicide
in 1980. He is buried in the Schoonselhof Cemetery
in Antwerp.
, though some of his major successes were with (partly) figurative
work: for instance, the cycle based on the myth of Orpheus which he produced in Boston, the cycle based on Homer’s Iliad he produced after his return to Antwerp.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
who spent the largest part of his creative life in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
.
Life
In 1945 he was a founding member of the Jeune Peinture Belge group. By the end of that decade he was briefly associated the CoBrA movementCOBRA (avant-garde movement)
COBRA was a European avant-garde movement active from 1948 to 1951. The name was coined in 1948 by Christian Dotremont from the initials of the members' home cities: Copenhagen , Brussels , Amsterdam .-History:...
, publishing some of his art in the CoBrA magazine.
In 1950 he moved to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. After a brief stay in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, he returned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1956, becoming head of the Painting Department at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, is one of the largest museums in the United States, attracting over one million visitors a year. It contains over 450,000 works of art, making it one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas...
.
In 1974 he returned to Belgium, to live in Antwerp, and devote himself exclusively to painting.
Jan Cox was psychically hyper-sensitive and suffered from recurrent depression throughout his life, eventually leading to his suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
in 1980. He is buried in the Schoonselhof Cemetery
Schoonselhof Cemetery
Schoonselhof Cemetery is located in Hoboken, Antwerp, a suburb of Antwerp, Belgium.Schoonselhof Cemetery has a Jewish section plus War memorials for the graves of 1,557 British Commonwealth soldiers who died fighting in World War I and World War II.-Notable interments:*Lode Baekelmans ,...
in Antwerp.
Work
Several of his paintings are abstractAbstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
, though some of his major successes were with (partly) figurative
Figurative art
Figurative art, sometimes written as figurativism, describes artwork—particularly paintings and sculptures—which are clearly derived from real object sources, and are therefore by definition representational.-Definition:...
work: for instance, the cycle based on the myth of Orpheus which he produced in Boston, the cycle based on Homer’s Iliad he produced after his return to Antwerp.
Artistic views
Jan Cox was convinced that the technical capabilities of a painter were of minor importance for the quality of the painting that resulted: in his view all technique a painter needed for the creation of paintings could be learnt in a few months, the rest depended on the painter's creativity.Sources
- Jan Cox, a Painter's Odyssey, a 1988 documentary film by Bert Beyens and Pierre De Clercq, with the voice of Jeroen KrabbéJeroen KrabbéJeroen Aart Krabbé is a Dutch actor and film director who has appeared in many Dutch and international films.-Biography:...
telling the story. - Jan Cox at the-artists.org
- A Jan Cox painting on a Belgian art stamp
- Jan Cox on "kunstonline"
- Myth, Symbol and Sexual Imagery in the painting of Jan Cox 1919-1980 - A honours dissertation by Peter P. Shea presented at the School of Art History at the University of St Andrews (UK)
- (Biography in Dutch) Jan Cox - Philippe Pirotte ; Robert F. Brown ; Claire Van Damme ; Karel Boullart. - Brussel : Gemeentekrediet, 1996. - 191 p., ill. - (Monografieën over moderne kunst ; 1996: 6). - ISBN 90-5066-169-6
