Willem Anthonie Oepts, born in Amsterdam on December 22, 1904, grew up without anyone expecting him to become a painter. He attended trade school, worked as a draftsman in the Amsterdam harbor, and drew and carved wood and linocuts in his spare time. Yet, it was precisely in this that his talent became apparent. In 1924, he met the Bergen painter Charley Toorop. She was immediately impressed, welcomed him into her circle of artist friends, and encouraged him to paint in oils; a match made in heaven.

His early work consists of Amsterdam cityscapes and street scenes, but France became his great love. In the summers, he lived and worked in the South of France, near Saint-Tropez, and in the winters he spent in his studio in Paris. The Mediterranean light became his hallmark, translated into contrasting, abstracted fields of color. They are a translation of his old wood and linocuts, executed in paint. Always sunny.

In the 1960s, Oepts’s work received the recognition it deserved. A growing number of collectors discovered his work and purchased directly from the painter, who eschewed the commercial art market. Oepts died in 1988 in his beloved Paris. Today, his work is popular and can be found in museum collections including those of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam and the Kunstmuseum Den Haag.

This autumn auction, we offer no fewer than three works by Wim Oepts: lots 6840, 6841, and 6842. An autumn with summery light.