He was the son of a house painter. From 1881 to 1887, he was enrolled at the
Royal Academy of Art, but left without completing his studies. In 1890, his friend
Jan Toorop introduced him to the work of the Belgian art group,
Les XX, who he exhibited with. Two years later,
Joséphin Péladan gave him a similar introduction to the
Salon de la Rose + Croix. Much of his painting, in the Symbolist style, was done during this period, from 1891 to 1895. In 1898, he became artistic director of the "
Arts & Crafts" gallery in The Hague, Despite this success, the clash between his aesthetics and the prevailing art styles, which was behind his departure from the gallery, continued. In addition, his political beliefs caused him to receive bad press (he was an anarchist when most of the Dutch art world favored socialism), which had a negative effect on his ability to obtain work. In 1904, he decided to move to Germany. With help from the art historian and museum director,
Friedrich Deneken, he was able to obtain a teaching position in
Krefeld at the new "
Handwerker- und Kunstgewerbeschule". After a short stay in
Überlingen from 1919 to 1920, he moved to Munich where he taught glass-painting and monumental art, then transferred to the
Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in 1923, followed by the
Cologne Art and Craft Schools in 1926. He remained there until his death. During his last decade, he focused on mosaics and stained-glass. His 1930 windows in the Church of St. Georg in Cologne played a fundamental role in shaping post-war stained glass in Germany, influencing the early stylistic phases of artist
Georg Meistermann. ==Selected works==