Anton Pieck, the Dutch Illustrator

Anton Pieck is without doubt the most well-known Dutch illustrator of the twentieth century. He used his distinct, romantic style to portray everyday life in his drawings. His enormous oeuvre of drawings, water colours, paintings, sketches and woodcuttings are a testament to his drive and passion.

An Extraordinary Artistic Talent

Anton Pieck was born in 1895 in the Dutch city of Den Helder. Both he and his twin brother Henri had a remarkable talent for drawing. Anton won his first prize for art at the age of 11 with a still life in watercolour at a craft exhibition, for which he received five tubes of paint and a fixative atomiser. Both brothers enrol in art college where they study drawing and painting, and learn about perspective, anatomy and art history. They graduate at the age of 17. While Henri enrols in a course at the Amsterdam Academy for Fine Arts Anton goes on to teach drawing, a tragic waste of his extraordinary talent. He educates himself further by following evening classes and in 1920 receives a permanent teaching post at Kennemer Secondary School in Overveen, where he is to be employed until his retirement.

Anton Pieck and Efteling

It is in the early 1950s that Anton Pieck is approached to contribute to a fairytale park and playground. By that time, he is well-known as an illustrator of famous fairy stories, such as those from the Brothers Grimm and Tales of One Thousand and One Nights. His creative spirit proved to be the driving force behind the unexpected success of Holland’s first theme park, fairytale park Efteling in Kaatsheuvel. He remained active in his role as park designer until 1974. It was thanks to Anton Pieck that the Efteling became a national phenomenon in Dutch recreational culture. Today, it is a place that brings people of all ages together to share the excitement of childhood and the romance of fairy tales. Anton Pieck passed away in Overveen on November 25, 1987 at the age of 92. An unfinished drawing was found pinned to his drawing board. The Efteling is proud to foster his legacy and much of the park still bears his name today.

— from the “Efteling”

Trivia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In the comic Spike and Suzy, the characters visit De Efteling three times, in De Efteling-elfjes, in Fata Morgana and in De belhamel-bende. In this last comic, Pieck has a cameo role when Ambrose is called by someone who knows where Aunt Sidonia is.
Drs. P. wrote a song, Winterdorp, as a hommage to Pieck’s cosy drawing style.
In a 2004 poll regarding De Grootste Nederlander (The Greatest Dutchman), the general public placed Pieck in 81st place.
Pieck illustrated the Dutch version of the book The Wonderful Adventures of Nils.
In Kaatsheuvel a LOM school has been named after Anton Pieck.
In 1972 he designed the classic car museum “Autotron” in Drunen. After the museum collection relocated to Rosmalen, the building has been used as a cultural centre housing a broad range of activities, including theatre, restaurants, music school, and club house for the elderly. The building’s name was changed to “De Voorste Venne”.