Jan Sierhuis self-portrait (2017)

Directed by: Marte Visser | 81 minutes | documentary

The list of Appel, Corneille and Lucebert will ring a bell even with non-art connoisseurs. It will be less known that Jan Sierhuis fits in with the same ease. Sierhuis, born in 1928, is a painter who gained fame after the Second World War and can best be characterized as an expressionist. At a young age he was actively involved in, among others, CoBrA and the Experimentelen. Today he still paints and that is of course one of the elements that is discussed in the documentary ‘Jan Sierhuis Self-portrait’.

In the documentary, director Marte Visser follows Sierhuis during what seems to be a random period in his life. Yet there is a certain structure to it. During the film, Sierhuis is regularly working on a self-portrait. This portrait forms the framework within which the painter reveals his life. From a small Amsterdam girl to an adult Amsterdam girl. Because the first thing that emerges in the film is that Sierhuis sees himself primarily as an Amsterdammer. Accompanying accent removes all doubt.

The film itself also paints a good portrait of Sierhuis. And that portrait shows an amiable man who has been through a lot in his life and who knows how to tell interesting stories about it. His stories about the past (and, as befits an 88-year-old, there are quite a few) are framed with archive images. That puts his stories better in context. Because with a film like this there is a risk that the anecdotal character remains too much on its own. By adding a timestamp to it, you as a viewer also get a better sense of his story.

With this documentary, Sierhuis seems to be getting the attention he deserves. Because this film also shows its value for art in the Netherlands. And from that point of view alone, the film succeeds. The film also remains intact as a character sketch. It shows an art-loving friendly painter who is not haughty. A fascinating element in sketching his personality is his love for Flamenco. Or as Sierhuis puts it: “The Flamenco contains everything from life”. And that points to a minus point in this film. His children are briefly spoken to and they are asked what kind of father he was. This is really the only attempt to get to know the person behind the phenomenon and it remains somewhat superficial. Nevertheless, ‘Jan Sierhuis self-portrait’ is a very interesting introduction and introspection of one of the Netherlands’ greatest artists.