Our team

Evert-Anthony Douwes IX

Evert-Anthony Douwes IX (the 9th generation) is Evert’s son. After growing up in the United Kingdom he moved to The Netherlands in 1995. After a short internship at Christie’s Amsterdam in 2009 and several internships abroad, Evert-Anthony went to study at Nyenrode Business University in Amsterdam. Focusing on entrepreneurship and art by writing his thesis on the impact of online channels on the decision-making process of the international art trade. During his studies he started working part-time at the Amsterdam gallery, helping out during art fairs, exhibitions and throughout the week. After finishing his studies Evert-Anthony officially became the 9th generation Douwes to join the family business in 2017. Working closely together with both his father and uncle, as well as his grandfather (Opa Douwes) until his passing in 2019, Evert-Anthony has steadily been gaining valuable hands-on experience in the art trade. In 2019 he lead the company to register the first Rembrandt etching on Blockchain worldwide, connecting Douwes Fine Art’s expertise with a new exciting technology.

Evert Douwes VIII

Director Evert Douwes (The 8th generation) has been spoon-fed with the art dealing profession. From the age of six, Evert listened to the stories told to him by his grandfather and followed his father’s directions while daubing on a spare canvas in the restoration department.

After High School, Evert enrolled in History of Art at the University of Amsterdam. During his studies he worked with leading expert Eberhard Kornfeld in Berne, Switzerland, allowing him to develop his own expertise in classic modern art and Rembrandt prints. Evert then spent time in London following the Sotheby’s Works of Art Course, allowing him to connect more closely with the international art market. After studying the famous collection of drawings and the Rembrandt print collection at the Institut Neerlandais in Paris, visiting museums throughout the United States and Canada, and re-organising the extensive and unique art library (now over 400,000 illustrations) at the family art gallery in Amsterdam, he was ready to open the London Branch of Douwes Fine Art in 1979.

Inspired by the knowledge of his father, Evert was able to gain experience in buying and selling, as well as the running of an international family owned art business. In 1995, after having lived in London for eighteen years, Evert, his wife and three children moved to Amsterdam where he has since been at the helm of the Douwes Fine Art Gallery, located across from the Rijksmuseum. He also established and ran the Hong Kong branch from 2013 – 2017.

Evert serves as an international painting expert in several vetting committees, was a Board member of the most important annual Dutch National Art and Antiques Fair (PAN – Pictura Antiquairs Nationaal), is a founding father of the annual ArtBreda fair in The Netherlands and remains very active in his field. Evert is also involved in various aspects of the protection of Cultural Heritage in the Netherlands.

In his spare time, he is president of the Ingeborg Douwes Foundation, a unique initiative since 2000 focusing on Psychosocial Care for Cancer patients and their families. https://www.ingeborgdouwesstichting.nl/

Erick Douwes

Erick Douwes (The 8th generation) is Evert’s younger brother. Erick joined the family firm in the early eighties with particular interest in restoration. Under the expert guidance of his father Evert VII (1928-2019) and with the assistance of other in-house professionals, Erick learned the required skills, including the full appreciation of the complex processes of this highly specialised artistry. In 1991 Erick also started a second Douwes Restoration Studio, outside of Amsterdam, which has now been moved to a different location near Utrecht. However, the main focus has always been to manage the Douwes Fine Art restoration department in Amsterdam. With Erick’s expertise, joined by competent staff members, new solutions to old problems need to be found regularly. Aided by the use of the latest technology, the Douwes Fine Art restoration department is able to keep up with any progress and innovation in the field. Erick is a member of the Dutch Art Restorers Association (RN) and is a past president of its sister organisation ARA. He is a certified Senior-Register Restorer acknowledged by both the Restauratoren Register (https://www.restauratorenregister.nl/) as well as the Foundation ERM (https://www.stichtingerm.nl/).

Barbara van Limburg Stirum