Biography
Jan Christiaan Poortenaar (b. Amsterdam, Netherlands July 23 1886 – d. Naarden, Netherlands October 15 1958) was a self-taught artist who originally took private lessons from Piet van Wijngaerdt (1873-1964) and Willem Witsen (1860-1923). He was primarily a graphic artist who lived in London between 1914-22 and made large etchings of Trafalgar Square and Waterloo Bridge. In 1915 he won the silver medal at the International Exhibition in San Francisco. He was a member of Arti et Amicitiae (Amsterdam Association of Visual Art) and the Haagse Kunstkring (The Hague Art Circle). He was married to the singer and composer Geertruida van Vladeracken (1880-1947) and together they travelled to the Dutch East Indies between 1922-24 on a piano recital tour, which also inspired his art. He finally settled in Naarden where he ran the publishing house, In Den Toren, writing and illustrating books, until his death.
