Theodore de Groot (1920-2019) Dutch/American, Mixed Media "Lathe Art" on Wood. Depicts a dapper golfer surveying his hole with a clubhouse, trees, and a dark blue sky beyond, all in bright colors and uniquely fitted together wooden slats. Signature burned into the wooden frame bottom right. 

Overall Size: 31 1/4 x 25 1/2 in. 

Sight Size: 26 1/4 x 20 1/4 in. 

Theodore Cornelius de Groot was born on December 15th, 1920 in Scheveningen, a beach suburb of The Hague in the Netherlands. Although he first followed his parents wishes and prepared for a career as an engineer he finally decided to follow his dream of being a painter, and left college to study for the next five years at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, taking post-graduate classes in sculpture. He also served in World War II, where he began to go by the nickname “Dick,” and after being discharged he met his wife Hans with whom he had five children. They opened two different pottery facilities, producing tea services, dinnerware, and objets d’art. He also became a house designer for Royal Begeer, designing items and medallions in precious metals for the Royal Family of the Netherlands. In 1959 they moved to Canada, swiftly relocating to America where they settled in Hunterdon, New Jersey. He began working in the New York City metropolitan area painting gigantic murals and scenes for advertising agencies, and was so successful that he soon was able to survive solely on commissions for murals, illustrations for magazines, portraits in oils, and bronze sculptures. For over thirty years he focused on urban subjects and scenes involving people, inventing a unique style known as “Lathe Art” that repurposed old materials from defunct wooden buildings like barns to create mosaics and paintings, but after twenty straight years of attending annual gallery showings in the 80s and 90s he suffered a minor stroke. He relocated to Hellertown, Pennsylvania to be cared for by family after the death of his wife in 2010, and eventually passed away on July 20th, 2019 at the Saucon Valley Manor assisted living facility.