Nikolaas Eekman - The prince on the pig

Beautiful etching by the Dutch figurative painter and illustrator Nikolaas Mathijs Eekman (Brussels, August 9, 1889 - Paris, November 13, 1973) also known as Nicolas Eekman, Nico Eekman and under the pseudonym Ekma.

His painting style can be characterized in three periods: expressionist from 1914 to the late 1920s, Flemish realist at the beginning of the 1950s, and finally 'fantastique'.

In 1921 Eekman settled in Paris. He often met the Dutch and Belgian artists who lived there, such as Fred Klein (Yves Klein's father), Piet Mondriaan, Cesar Domela, Georges Vantongerloo and Frans Masereel. He became friends with gallery owner Jeanne Bucher, who exhibited his work in 1928, together with the work of Mondrian. This was the only time that Mondrian's paintings would be exhibited in a gallery in Paris. Although Eekman was against abstract art and Mondriaan was one of its pioneers, they would always remain very good friends.
During the 1930s, Eekman participated in group exhibitions around the world, mainly in the United States, while his solo shows took place throughout Europe. During the interwar period, Eekman was part of the artistic movement around Montparnasse. There he became friends with Jean Lurçat, Louis Marcoussis, Andre Lhote, Max Jacob, Moise Kisling, Marc Chagall, Picasso, Dali, Armand Nakache, Paul Signac, Jacques Lipchitz, Fernand Léger, Edouard Goerg, Max Ernst.
In 1937, at the International Exhibition in Paris, Eekman received a gold medal for his painting "La Pelote bleue" ("The Blue Ball"), which was purchased by the State for the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume.
At the beginning of World War II, he was wanted by the Nazis and settled in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, in southwestern France, where he worked under the pseudonym Ekma. Eekman illustrated several books, including Les Destinées by Alfred de Vigny (1933), Contes d'un buveur de bière by Charles Deulin (1945), Tyl Uilenspiegel by Charles de Coster (1946) and L'Ane Culotte by Henri Bosco (1950). ).
Dimensions: 22x17cm and with frame 42x32cm and glass plate for the etching - signed in the plate.
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