Peter Van Kleef

Rotterdam-born artist and impresario Peter Van Kleef is a San Francisco Bay Area Icon. When the New York Times famously declared Oakland, California as the #5 place to visit on the planet in 2012, it cited the art and nightlife scene in the Uptown District, accurately calling Van Kleef the 'Godfather' of the urban renewal taking place. CAFE VAN KLEEF, his venerable establishment on Telegraph near Broadway has been showcasing Peter's work and that of others for the past dozen years, a veritable art explosion. When California Governor Jerry Brown had his recent stint as Mayor of Oakland, he was a regular in the evenings at CVK, earning it the reputation as a 'partisan art bar.'

An avid art lover, Van Kleef's weekly 'Book Club' is a hotbed of ideas and creative thought, an anchor in an artistic community becoming recognized worldwide. Van Kleef will openly cite his artistic influences, especially Dutch artist Willem De Kooning. He is also heavily inspired by Richard Diebenkorn's Ocean Park series and Julian Schnabel.

Peter Van Kleef's work is available exclusively in San Francisco at Arttitud.