Introducing Albert Houthuesen

I am going up to Doncaster this week to give a talk about Albert Houthuesen [1903-1979].

Who, you may ask, is this?

Albert is an artist who has deeply inspired my own creative journey, but who very few people have heard of.

My father was, throughout his life, an enthusiastic advocate of his work. As such I was brought up looking at and thinking about his art.

As a young man in the late 1960s, my father visited Albert weekly in Camberwell, to interview him about his life. This two year project resulted in a book called Walk to the Moon, which transcribed and compiled these conversations into a narrative, telling Albert’s story in Albert’s own words.

These words have and continue to provide a helpful anchor to me through my own quest to navigate life and art.

I also wrote about Albert for my university dissertation, looking at how dance became a powerful influence in the development of his painting. As you can imagine, this is something that strongly resonated with me. As did his general love of beauty and sense of wonder at the world around him.

After my father passed away in 2018 my family and I picked up where he left off, working closely with the Albert Houthuesen Trust to help raise Albert’s profile.

It is therefore with great pleasure that we can announce an exciting step forward in this endeavour.

After a 4 year dialogue with the Friends of the Doncaster Museums and the Danum Gallery, Library Museum, a new exhibition has opened celebrating Albert’s life and work.

The exhibition will run until 15th April 2023. For more information please click the button below: