Willem de Rooij

Willem de Rooij explores the creation, context, and interpretation of images using a diverse range of mediums. Integrating appropriations and collaborations into his artistic approach, De Rooij's projects have sparked fresh inquiries in the realms of art history and ethnography.

Biography of Willem de Rooij

Willem de Rooij was born in 1969 in Beverwijk, The Netherlands. He pursued art history at the University of Amsterdam from 1989 to 1990, followed by studies in art at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie from 1990 to 1995, and later at the Rijksakademie from 1997 to 1998, both located in Amsterdam.

From 1994 to 2006, he collaborated with Jeroen de Rijke under the name De Rijke / De Rooij. Their joint efforts resulted in significant exhibitions at K21, Düsseldorf (2007), and the Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna (2008). They also represented The Netherlands at the Venice Biennale in 2005.

Since 2006, he has held the position of Professor of Art at the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and has been a tutor at De Ateliers in Amsterdam since 2002.

In 2016, the artist co-established the BPA// Berlin program for artists and was elected as a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In 2000, De Rooij received the Bâloise Art Prize, and he earned nominations for the Hugo Boss Award in 2004 and the Vincent Award in 2014. He served as a Robert Fulton Fellow at Harvard University in 2004 and as a DAAD fellow in Berlin in 2006. 

His recent solo exhibitions include "Root" at Galerie Thomas Schulte in Berlin (2023), "King Vulture" at Steirischer Herbst in Graz (2022), "Bouquet IX" at Delgosha Gallery in Tehran (2021), and many more.