Jan Cooke Gallery
William Henry Jan Cooke, Burgher Artists from Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) also my Grandfather. I thought that it would be good to have some of his work remembered or discovered by a new generation of art lovers. Over time I will try and track down as much of his work as possible to share. Thanks for dropping in I will look to provide more information in the near future.
WHAT'S NEW
25/03/09 Well it has been a few years since there has been any action on this site - for many a good reason. I'm glad to report I have been quite active in the last small portion of time and below are a whole new crop of items I have managed to track down one way or another.
The Face of the Artist - 1972 - Courtesy of ART SRI LANKA - Please see their website to learn more about all Sri Lankan and Burgher Artist.
http://www.artsrilanka.org
The Composer - 1972 - Courtesy of ART SRI LANKA
Buddha Statue - 1936 - Courtesy of ART SRI LANKA
Patharana Cave - 1931 - Courtesy of ART SRI LANKA
Join The Army Now - 1942 - From the Imperial War Museum: Posters of Conflict - The Visual Culture of Public Information and Counter Information - Courtesy Visual Arts Data Service
For more details on this picture
Guard Your Homes - 1942 - From the Imperial War Museum: Posters of Conflict - The Visual Culture of Public Information and Counter Information - Courtesy Visual Arts Data Service
For more details on this picture
This pic was added on the 29.12.06. It belongs to Janine Cooke, my Auntie but will shortly be making its way back to Sri Lanka. For obvious reasons I've named it "Natures Best". To me it depicts the best that nature has to offer. It was painted in 1971 only a few years before my Grandfather died and only a year before I myself was born.
Burgher Art and a Rare Exhibition
By J. B. Müller
The Burghers of Sri Lanka have invariably been a very creative community in many ways, not the least of which has been manifested, quite abundantly, in the sphere of the Fine Arts. In this instance, it is painting drawing its inspiration and legitimacy from a European heritage that had produced such Great Masters as Ast, Bakhuysen, Bruegel, Craen, Cranach, Dürer, Flegel, and Gogh. Holbein, Jordaens, Rembrandt, and others equally revered in the World of Art.
The DBU [Dutch Burgher Union] is now presenting an exhibition of some 100 paintings by over 50 Burgher artists representing a tradition that started approximately two hundred years ago in 1811, shortly after the British took over the Dutch possessions on the Island in 1796. The dates to keep free are from 28th to 30th of May, (the 27th is open only to schools) at the Harold Peiris Gallery of the Lionel Wendt. is the 28th of May, a Friday evening.
From Van Houten in 1811, the several versatile Van Dorts, the talented Belings, Claessen and Collette, Keyt, the DeNieses, Beven, Cooke, Gibbs, Harridge, Raffel to Weinman, the works of a scintillating galaxy of Burgher artists will be on display at this landmark exhibition which, in itself, is a vigorous statement that the Burghers are not dead and certainly far from being buried by the vagaries of time, circumstance and history.
The characteristically high-spirited Burghers with their exuberant love of life and wry sense of humour painted with zest and freshness like their European ancestors did on that vibrant and dynamic continent thousands of kilometres away across the seas.
The Exhibition has one exception, and that is the photography of another great artist, the immortal Lionel Wendt who expressed himself in this more modern medium.
A limited edition hardcover book of 500 copies titled ‘The Burgher Connection’ displaying the artistry of the Burghers will also be launched later on this year though it was first expected to be launched at this Exhibition and will be available for the modest price of Rs. 3,000 per copy. Certainly, it will very soon be a prized collectors’ item of great value. As a ‘buy’ it is a must for all art lovers and a reservation at the Exhibition is advised to all art lovers.
Burgher art displays the styles of each period from the early 19th. Century to this present day and age and represents various schools and styles, moods and perspectives of the wide variety of artists and for that reason alone, is worth the art lovers’ patronage.
Many Burgher artists work and live in their own post-1948 Diaspora, the main countries being Australia, Britain and Canada, exiled by time and circumstance from their Motherland. However, artistic expression is an universal medium that recognizes no borders because like the noblest expressions of the human spirit, it transcends them and transforms the beholder.
Burgher Art is Sri Lankan Burgher Art and is deeply rooted in the soil of this beloved land, which it pictures so sensitively. The many faces and figures and scenes, the mediums used to express those images of people and places and things, the colours, the interplay of light and shadow poignantly open a window upon the soul of the artist and that is like manna from heaven for the aficionado. Come, look, reflect, and appreciate the contribution made to the cultural life of Sri Lanka by this miniscule but significant ethno-socio-cultural community of European origin and of mixed parentage.
This exhibition is another ‘bridge’ built by the ‘bridge-builders’ par excellence -- the Burghers.
Published in The Sunday Island -- Lifestyle -- May 23, 2004.
I came across this picture in a book called the Elmtree Collection. A collection of pieces by well known Sri Lankan artist owned by a wealthy art collecter. I'm looking into the history of this which is not easy when both artist and wife (My Grandparents) are no longer with us.
This painting was done in 1950, the year of my mothers birth. This seems to be a typically popular subject for my Grandfather. Females in all their natural beauty.
Also very typical of his style. This was painted in 1971.
I believe this may have been one of Jan Cooke's last paintings. There's enough indication to say that this was never completed. See if you can spot the evidence.
This sketch is of my Grandmother. I get the feeling that my grandfather may have never finished this, possibly due to his death. However, it was completed by his daughter (my Aunty), Hester.
This is a reproduction of a photo I took when I was in Sri Lanka. We were passing the Liberty Cinema in Colombo and my mother suggested we take a look inside to see if my Grandfathers Mural was still painted on the wall. Low and behold, after 50 years, it still was.
My appreciation must go to my Aunty Janine, the daughter named after Jan Cooke. On the 20th of July 2001 after she had just returned from a trip to Sri Lanka, she presented me with this novel written by R.L. Spittel and illustrated by my Grandfather. It was first published in 1941 in England and the US in 1942. It was only reprinted in 2000.
Some illustrations from the book. Here is also part of a review of the book.
"There is a wealth of material dealing with the habits and character of the Veddas and the jungle background is magnificently painted. The scraper-board illustrations by Jan Cooke illumine the pages, and are by no means the least interesting feature of the book."
- Montreal Daily Star (Review on American edition - 1942.
More pieces to come soon, as I am aware of at least another 5 I can photograph in Australia alone and more in Sri Lanka which will obviously present a little more of a challenge. For more information contact me on the e-mail address below. These pieces are all under copyright to the Cooke estate. Thank you for checking out my Grandfather's works.
hamish@kingsgrovesports.com.au
