Willem exposition (September 1998)

17 September 1998

On 17 September 1998, Galerie Lambiek opened an exposition of work by the legendary Dutch political illustrator Bernard Holtrop, better known as Willem.

The theme of this exhibition was the colorful 1980s, on which Willem comments in accessible, cynical and poignant drawings.

Willem was born in 1947 as Bernard Willem Holtrop in Ermelo, The Netherlands. He became illustrator for the provocative left-wing movement in the 1960s. After 1968, he left Holland and settled in Paris, France. There he contributed to magazines such as Hara-kiri and Charlie-Hebdo. Eventually he got employed by newspaper Libération. Besides political drawings, Willem also makes travel journals, such as 'Quais Baltiques' and 'De Langste Nacht'. The exposition in Galerie Lambiek enabled an audience to view original work of this internationally acclaimed artist for the first time since the 1960s. The exposition was open until the end of October 1998.