Leo de Winter

Leo de Winter (Amsterdam 1917 – Haarlem 1983), was a visual artist, he made etchings, wood engravings, drawings and paintings with the subject: still lifes, portraits, landscapes and cityscapes.

Leo was a self-taught painter and worked in the style of the (new) Haarlem School. He was taught by Henri F. Boot.

De Winter was co-founder of Kunstkring de Acht, member (board member and later honorary member) of K.Z.O.D. (Art Be Our Purpose).

De Winter himself said of his painting: 'I paint because I have to, I paint a lot from nature, but a painting is not a copy of it, but a construction of mine. When I work I feel like a bird in the air, making a few wing beats and then soaring, I make a start and let myself go. I then find myself in a different condition, a form of unconscious action, and that is where my work arises."

Leo de winter painted a lot in Haarlem and surroundings such as Spaarndam, the Spaarne, the North Holland coastal area, western harbor area, etc.