Keetje Mans (b. 1979, Amsterdam, Netherlands) studied at the academy of fine arts 1999-2004 and the Jan van Eyck academy 2013-2014 in Maastricht.
A sense of cultural ‘rubbing along’ runs like a thread through her paintings and drawings, represented in characteristic scenes with mystical dimensions and references to exotic folk culture, which lend distinctive symbolic overtones to the work. By using off-colours and domestic elements she try’s to displace her subjects and motives out of their contexts in vaguely home-made interiors. She likes to work with symbols and subjects that have a homespun character to them to construct a more private world.
Selected solo exhibitions include (upcoming) Tini Mini Room Dordrecht, Wild With Delight, solo- Show curated by Ralf Kokke (2024); Gallery Cokkie Snoei, When my soul touches yours-We’re all stories in the end, a duo-solo show with Marie Reintjes (2022); Gallery Cokkie Snoei, Bird Island, a duo-solo show with Tracey Snelling (2021).
Selected group exhibitions include (upcoming) CAN art fair Ibiza 26-june til 1st of july with gallery Marian Cramer projects: a group show with Karel Dicker and Bo Bosk (2024); (upcoming) Museum More Gorssel, ‘Bathers’ from 1900 til now , a group-show curated by Maite Van Dijk and Tanja Ritterbex with a.o. Kerry James Marshall, Peter Doig, Claire Tabouret, Jenna Gribbon, David Hockney, Katherine Bradford June (2024); Marian Cramer Projects ‘Luxe Benen’ a group-show curated by Ralf Kokke (2024); Museum More Gorssel, ‘Bathers’ from 1900 til now, a group-show curated by Maite Van Dijk and Tanja Ritterbex with a.o. Kerry James Marshall, Peter Doig, Claire Tabouret, Jenna Gribbon, David Hockney, Katherine Bradford (2024); De Familie Kamer Art Prize with a.o. Lotte Wieringa, Sophie Steengracht, Marjolein Van Haasteren, Hans De Bruin (2023); Dat Bolwerk Zutphen group-show : I won’t be an egg which you can crack in a hurry for the world, curated by Marlise van der Jagt and Margot Schaap with the artists Sophie Ebrard, Csilla Klenyánszki, Andi Galdo Vinko, Lenka Clayton, Tala Madani, Rini Brakke and Keetje mans (2023); Duo – Solo show, Cokkie Snoei Rotterdam, When my soul touches yours/we’re all stories in the end, together with Marie Reintjes (2022); Museum Jan Cunen in Oss a show about The Dutch Vorstengraven : with a.o. Chaim Van Luijt, Anneke Eussen, Stijn Ter Braak and Levi Van Veluw (2023); Odapark Venlo , Keeping up with the Joneses, a group-show with Elke Lutgerink and Chantal le Doux curated by ourselves and Joep Vossebeld Finissage and Interview by Paula van Den Bosch, Bonnefanten museum (2023); Marres Maastricht Limburg Biennale, a Group-show curated by Valentijn Byvanck with a.o. Chaim Van Luit, Mike Moonen, Charlotte Lagro, Hadassah Emmerich, Joan Van Barneveld (2020).
Highlights and Collections. Keetje Mans' works grace the collections of prestigious institutions, including Dela, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Inland Affairs, University of Maastricht, AMC Kunstcollection Amsterdam, OCW Amsterdam, DSM Kunstcollection, Bonnefantenmuseum Maastricht, Schunck* museum Heerlen, Atriummc Kunstcollectie Heerlen, and AZM Maastricht. Notably, Mans has been honored with the Royal Award for Painting at Amsterdam's Paleis op de Dam in 2012, alongside Frank Ammerlaan, Evi Vingerling, and Jasper Hagenaar. She also received the Hermine Van Bers Prijs in 2011. Mans has participated in residencies such as Van Gogh Air, Zundert at Van Gogh Huis (2023), and the Jan Van Eyck Academy Maastricht (2013-2014). Additionally, she has been the recipient of two grants from the Mondriaan Fund, spanning from 2013-2017 and 2021-2025, respectively.