For six decades, artist Hennie Agten has meticulously recreated the works of Vincent van Gogh from his home base in Helmond, demonstrating such precision that his canvases often evoke the original Dutch master. Agten exhibited his extensive collection on Saturday inside the Kostershuisje in Nuenen, the oldest cottage in the village and situated moments away from where Van Gogh once lived and maintained his studio.
Recreating The Potato Eaters in Nuenen
Agten has painted Van Gogh’s iconic 1885 masterpiece, The Potato Eaters, six times throughout his career. Working from memory inside the historic Kostershuisje—which shares the same authentic ceiling structure depicted in the famous peasant painting—Agten explained that the canvas holds no secrets for him anymore. “I know it by heart,” Agten stated regarding the composition, noting that he actively removes perceived flaws from the original work while painting. He identifies the face of Gordina de Groot, for whom Vincent paid one guilder per day to model, as his favorite subject. Capturing the precise lighting of the hanging lamp on the figures’ faces remains his greatest technical challenge, according to the artist.
Technique, Palette, and Affordable Materials
Rejecting modern commercial art supplies, Agten relies on inexpensive tools to draft his detailed charcoal and pencil sketches, often working in sequences of three. “People buy the most expensive things to draw and paint,” Agten said, explaining that he relies simply on two pencils costing 95 cents each. “It’s not in the pencil. It’s in your head. I’ve had that since I was seven.” His technical mastery extends to Van Gogh’s specific color palette, which Agten notes famously avoided pure black in favor of Prussian blue.
Exhibition at the Kostershuisje
Agten’s ongoing residency at the Kostershuisje allows visitors to view his comprehensive retrospective of Van Gogh copies up close. Alongside his finished paintings of familiar Dutch landscapes, such as the Collse Watermolen, Agten spent Saturday working on a new autumnal composition that merges the historic watermill with four separate scenic elements. Beyond his local presence in North Brabant, Agten maintains a dedicated following, including a fan club based in Belgium boasting 180 members.
Worth a look