Ode to Riek Milikowski-de Raat | Against poverty, war and discrimination

In the collection of the Amsterdam Museum are several oil paintings that Amsterdam artist Riek Milikowski-de Raat donated to this museum in 2009. Riek de Raat comes from an Amsterdam working-class family and her modest oeuvre is an autobiographical statement in which she symbolically depicts her social and societal views and her involvement in world events. Even as a child she had to contribute to the family income during the crisis years of the last century, but despite this she was able to take drawing classes in the evenings at the Institute for Art Education (I.v.K.N.O.) and at De Nieuwe Kunstschool (DNK) in Amsterdam. 

Her childhood friend, the painter Anneke van der Feer, encouraged her to continue painting. During WWII, Riek de Raat was in the resistance and she could only take evening classes illegally at the I.v.K.N.O., but after the war she was admitted for evening classes at the Rijks Akademie in Amsterdam. Four statements she donated to the Amsterdam Museum. 'Twaalfuurtje' (1954) and '1-May tulips' (1987) speak for themselves. In 1941 she was involved in the organization of the February Strike and in the triptych 'February Strike Commemoration' (1980-1999) she depicts persecution, resistance and liberation.

In 2008 she painted a portrait of her home help in Amsterdam: 'Grandma Corrie works and lives in Amsterdam NL'. The past and political actuality summarized in words and images. Her other work is in the Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal in Leiden and in the Stadsarchief of Amsterdam (drawings) and in the Netherlands Collection of the Rijksdienst voor Cultureel Erfgoed (paintings), respectively. With her artistic legacy, Riek Milikowski-de Raat wants to contribute to awareness and active stance against poverty, war and discrimination.

Lit:
Riek Milikowski-de Raat, The Color of Reality. Eext, 2002, 2023 - ISBN 978-90-805002-9-7

This text has been automatically translated by AI and may contain errors.