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Twan Janssen



Twan Janssen sees himself as an actor playing the role of an artist. The artworks are props for the performances and the exhibitions are part of the script. In this way, Janssen plans and creates his own future, probably making him the only artist who knows exactly how his career will turn out. He questions the art world: if the artist is an actor, how should we value his art and the institutions he works with?


Twan Janssen lives and works in Amsterdam; he was educated at the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten in 1987-1990 and at Ateliers Arnhem in 1990-1992, both in the Netherlands. Janssen spent 2004-2005 at the Chinese European Art Centre (CEAC) in Xiamen, China. From 2010-2015 he ran the fashion company YOUASME MEASYOU with Mark van Vorstenbos, they received the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund Fashion Scholarship in 2014 for their work.


In his work, Janssen uses acrylic paint as a multifunctional material, sculpting, making reliefs and objects but also photorealistic paintings that portray paint and colour. He gives the painting process a new definition by using colour in a variety of innovative ways. The works are funny, sometimes tender and often self-referential, and show that there is still much to discover about painting. Read more