Aart Klein
Tineke de Ruiter
Abstract
Aart Klein is best known for photographs that unmistakably bear his signature: serene white and black photography. Klein emphasized the order here: white and black, because for him photographing is drawing with light on black paper. His subjects are in general typically Dutch: the Delta Works, harbours, water, the landscape. In all of these people play a subordinate role.
Biography
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1909 |
Aart Klein is born in Amsterdam on 2 August. |
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circa 1922-25 |
Klein is enrolled in the Achtste HBS, a three-year secondary course in Amsterdam. |
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circa 1925-28 |
He begins working as a clerk in various offices and businesses. He becomes a member of the Arbeiders Jeugd Centrale (AJC, a labour union for young workers). |
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1928 |
He is called up for his military service, where he is trained as a NCO. |
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1929 |
He travels to the Dutch East Indies as an clerk on a ship of the Stoomvaart Maatschappij Nederland. |
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circa 1930-39 |
At the recommendation of Koos Vorrink Aart Klein is appointed by Polygoon as their chief photographer. This is actually an administrative function; among other tasks, Klein has to draw up a roster of assignments for the six photographers. Later the director, B.D. Ochse, gives him the chance to photograph himself. Together with Joop van Bilsen he becomes the most important photographer at Polygoon, where continues to work for nine years. He becomes a member of the Vereniging voor Persfotografen en Filmoperateurs (Union of press photographers and cameramen). |
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1936 |
He marries Johanna Magdalena Lindenberg, whom he met in the AJC. |
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1939-40 |
As an NCO he is called up during the pre-mobilization After the battle at the Grebbeberg he is briefly a prisoner of war in Utrecht. After the Dutch weapons are surrendered, he is permitted to return to civilian life. In the meantime Polygoon has dismissed all employees who were called up for military service. |
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1940-45 |
After May, 1940, Aart Klein begins working for the press photographer Han Schimmelpenningh in The Hague. When the press photographers and cameramen’s union becomes a section of the Kultuurkamer, Aart Klein resigns his membership. He can no longer work for Schimmelpenningh, and in November 1941 leaves for Haarlem. There he works for a year together with Gerrit van de Werff as a city hall photographer, doing wedding pictures. |
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For several months in 1942 he is manager of the Amsterdam branch of the Enschede press agency Brusse, in the Spuistraat. They send Klein photographs which he then sells to the press. Before he can do that he must present the photos daily to the Referat Bildpresse in The Hague for their approval. |
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In 1943 he is transported to Germany as part of a forced labour programme. Together with six other photographers he is put to work in Halle as a portrait photographer. |
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He is given leave after a year. In Amsterdam he goes into hiding under name Aart Donkersloot. He works for what is called the Donia Group, part of the Rolls Royce spy group. On one occasion, at the request of the Dutch Internal forces, he makes photographs, which are smuggled to England. Three of these photos appear in the Vrij Nederland on 28 April, 1945, which was printed in England |
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1945 |
Albert Heiman (pseudonym of Lou Lichtveld) calls together a number of photographers who had been part of the resistance to record the liberated Netherlands. The participating photographers are Maria Austria, Lood van Bennekom, Paul Huf, Henk Jonker, Aart Klein, Puck Voüte and Wim Zilver Rupe. Heiman names the group Particam (Partisans Camera). Quite quickly several photographers drop out of the group. Ultimately four photographers, Austria, Jonker, Klein and Zilver Rupe, establish the Particam agency on the Willemsparkweg in Amsterdam. |
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Together with Henk Lamme, Harry Sagers and Erik Hof, Aart Klein is one of the co-founders of the Dutch Union of Photojournalists (NVF). For two years he is co-editor of the magazine De Fotojournalist. |
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1946 |
In March Lou Landré, working for the Government Information Service (Rijksvoorlichtingsdienst, RVD), sends Aart Klein to Germany to photograph there as a ‘war correspondent’, with the rank of a British Army captain. Together with the writer Hans Nesna and the photographer Sem Presser he puts together the book Zoo leeft Duitschland, op de puinhoopen van het Derde Rijk. |
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1953 |
Wim Zilver Rupe withdraws from Particam. At Aart Klein’s initiative the name Particam is changed to Particam Pictures. The agency has a monopoly in the field of theatre, opera, ballet, cabaret and circus photography. |
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1956 |
After conflicts with Henk Jonker and Maria Austria, Aart Klein decides to set up as an independent photographer. He promises Particam that he will no longer be involved with theatre photography. Klein now focuses on business photography. One of his first clients is the Van Houten chocolate factory. He spends four weeks in England photographing ‘pubs, gardens and country houses’, which are used for candy boxes and wrappers. |
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He becomes a member of the GKf. For about four years Aart Klein, as the secretary, will form the administration of the photographers’ section, along with Ad Windig as the chairman. |
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1958-59 |
As an instructor in photography, Aart Klein teaches this year at the Graphic School in Utrecht. |
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circa 1961-62 |
After his courses at the School voor Fotografie en Fototechniek in The Hague, Hans Samson assists Aart Klein for three months.. |
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circa 1969 |
Commissioned by the Stoomvaart Maatschappij Nederland, Aart Klein travels to Hong Kong, The Philippines, Taiwan and Japan. The photographs from this trip are used in the book Semper Mare Navigandum. |
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1973 |
Aart Klein receives a travel grant of 5000 guilders from the Ministry of Culture, Recreation and social work to visit Japan for three months to study the infrastructure for photography there. |
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1977 |
He receives a documentary photo commission from the Amsterdam Art Fund to photograph ‘city profiles’. |
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Commissioned by Canon, Hans and Laura Samsom make an audiovisual dia presentation ‘Schrijven met licht’. Work by Aart Klein is also included in this presentation. |
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1982 |
On 29 October Aart Klein receives the Joop Alblas Prize in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. |
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circa 1983 |
Aart Klein becomes a member of the advisory committee for the Netherlands Photo Archive Foundation. |
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1986 |
On 23 May Aart Klein fives a lecture at the Makkom Foundation in Amsterdam during the A Priori Fotografie exhibition. |
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A large retrospective exhibition of the work of Aart Klein is presented in Breda. |
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A boxed set of two portfolios of his work is published simultaneously. |
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On 8 October Aart Klein gives a lecture to the Sinus Foundation in Den Bosch, on the occasion of the publication and exhibition. |
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1987 |
On 10 March NOS broadcasts a filmed portrait of Aart Klein in the programme Beeldspraak. |
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2001 |
Aart Klein dies in Amsterdam on 31 October. |
Discussion
Aart Klein was an individualist, who slowly but surely achieved a uniquely personal style in photography. He found space for poetry and serenity within the bounds of rather formal photography.
Within various photographic organizations he was a quiet force in the background, who provided constructive ideas for improving the status of photographers in The Netherlands.
Actually, Aart Klein’s photographic career began by accident. As an employee at the Polygoon photo press agency in the 1930s he was given a plate camera, without knowing anything about photography. The director, B.D.Ochse, was of the opinion that one had to master the profession by being thrown in at the deep end. Klein did his first photo assignment for Polygoon with a camera without using a shutter. The bicyclists who he was sent to photograph were nowhere to be found on the exposed plates. He subsequently got a shutter, and learned the trade of press photographer on his own.
For years after that Klein continued to work as a press photographer. His photos of the children of the Belgian royal house at the beach, a brass band competition at the Artis, or of Boy Scouts during a parade appeared in various newspapers and periodicals, without his name being attached. One of the few traceable photos from this time is a picture for which Klein kept the negative himself: Rachmaninov at a grand piano in the Concertgebouw. Equipped with a Leica with a ‘silent’ shutter, Klein was the first to be permitted by the directors of the Concertgebouw to make photographs during a recital.
His employment with Polygoon was cut short by the outbreak of the Second World War. After that Klein worked for the Schimmelpenningh photo press agency in The Hague. Schimmelpenningh had worked for Polygoon in the past, but set up independently in The Hague in 1934. In 1941 freedom of the press became increasingly restricted. For photography that meant that after the Journalistenbesluit of May, 1941, photos were divided into categories: forbidden, undesirable, desirable, free and required. Schimmelpenningh provided many desirable photographs, such as shots of official German events. Klein could not work in this atmosphere, and left the Hague in November, 1941. None of the photographs he did during his time with Schimmelpenningh are credited to Klein either.
Until the liberation in 1945 Klein’s life – as was the case for so many others – was filled with intermezzos and incidents, which for Aart Klein were always connected with photography.
He worked briefly as a city hall photographer in Haarlem, primarily photographing newly married couples on the stairs of the City Hall. He did administrative work for the Brusse photo press agency, and even during his period of forced labour in Germany he worked as a retoucher.
After the way Aart Klein was a co-founder and member of the Particam photo group, in which Maria Austria, Henk Jonker and Wim Zilver Rupe were also members. Particam acquired a monopoly for itself in photographing theatre, ballet and cabaret. The group could thank two events for this position: first, the photographers from Particam were the only ones to take pictures of Albert van Dalsum’s ‘first liberated theatre company’, which had occupied the Stadsschouwburg in Amsterdam; and, moreover, Aart Klein had discovered a way of making the rather slow films more sensitive, so that one did not need to use a flash during performances and concerts.
Particam photographed all the performances in the Amsterdam Schouwburg. In terms of form their photography still did not differ much from pre-war theatre photography. It was customary that key scenes would be staged for the photographer. It was only rarely that anyone stood in the wings or in the auditorium with a camera during a performance. The photo of Musch’s farewell is one of the few examples of that. Klein photographed the ageing actor from behind, bowing to a standing audience, using a long shutter time to catch the falling curtain in motion. Klein, Austria and Jonker also worked for the Concertgebouw orchestra, the Dutch Opera Foundation and the large ballet companies. Their photos were sold to newspapers and weekly and monthly magazines, including the Algemeen Handelsblad and the magazine De Spiegel In principle they always worked on assignment. In addition to the theatre photography they kept busy with reportage on the most diverse subjects. The resurrection of The Netherlands, the pride and optimism of a nation rebuilding, was an aspect they frequently sought to visualize. In 1956 Aart Klein withdrew from Particam Pictures and established himself as an independent photographer. The vast majority of his negatives from the Particam period are still to be found in the Maria Austria Archive.
Aart Klein was one of the co-founders of the Dutch Union of Photojournalists, the successor to the pre-war Union of Press Photographers and Cameramen. In the short period that he sat on the board he focused primarily on the economic position of the photojournalist. Output schedules and copyrights were important issues. In 1955 his idea for an international contest for photojournalists is was developed by others into the World Press Photo awards.
Most of the members of Particam were also members of the GKf. It was not however until 1956, after he had left Particam, that Aart Klein joined ths association. He fulfilled an administrative function in the GKf over a four year period, 1956-1960. One of the most important actions from his administrative period was a plan that was presented to the Art Council for discussion, to give photographers the opportunity to devote some time to the autonomous practice of their profession. The aim was to arrive at a further development of photography in The Netherlands. Until that point the GKf’s photographers’ section had emphatically pronounced for photography on commission.
In the 1950s Klein’s own commissioned photography began to display a more independent character. In contrast to what his background as a press photographer might lead one to expect, Aart Klein did not develop into a typical reportage photographer. He distinguished himself from most of his colleagues from the GKf, who in the late 1950s and early 1960s increasingly opted for social engagement. Klein had found his own style in a distinctly ‘white and black’ photography, in which formal aesthetic considerations were central.
He found his subjects in the Dutch, and particularly the Zeeuwse landscape. There had never been a strong landscape tradition in The Netherlands; Aart Klein was one of the few photographers with a unique, personal vision of the landscape. He photographed the harbours, the industries, the water, and the grandeur of the Delta Works.
His clients, industries and businesses, used his photos in annual reports, books and calendars. His work, which has often been termed ‘graphic’, was extremely popular with graphic designers. This strong relation between photography and typography was a continuation of the tradition of the New Photography, a relation that one finds throughout the GKf in the 1950s and 1960s When Klein did reportage for clients, such as the travel reports with Herman Besselaar for the Algemeen Handelsblad, the ‘decisive moment’ appeared to be important for him. After Cartier Bresson’s book Images a la Sauvette this ontological concept for photography played an important role in the 1950s. One of its consequences for photography was to emphasise the anecdotal. Some of Aart Klein’s photos are such slices out of time; the photographer as it were, sat waiting for a cat to run out of the image, or for a seagull to fly into it.
People seldom play a central role in Klein’s photography. Generally seen from the back, or as a backlit form, they are small in the image, as little more than an element suggesting the scale. Pauline Terreehorst therefore terms his photos still-lifes.
The appearance of Aart Klein’s images is characterized by a reduction of the grey tones. He loved contrasts; brightly lilt areas alternate with deep black shadows and a sharply visible grain. It is not the three-dimensionality and plasticity that is accented, but the composition on the flat surface. Lines and shapes are the dominant visual elements. Order is often introduced by symmetrical compositions. Klein had a penchant for frontal shots, in which the principle subject stands parallel with the picture plane. For Aart Klein photography was drawing with light (white) on a black background. When people called his style ‘graphic’, he emphasized that light is the medium of expression, and not pigment.
In his work he felt himself related to Harry Callahan and Ansel Adams.
In the 1950s the strong white/black effects and the play of lines was an important part of the generally applied formal language in photography. The German photographer Otto Steinert brought together the work of photographers who practised Subjektive Fotografie – those who employed photography as a means of personal expression – in three exhibitions. Art Klein’s work was included in the second exhibition, in 1954. For most of these photographers, the reduction of grey tones led to the dominance of forms, this often inclined them to abstraction. There were therefore frequently parallels drawn with postwar abstract expressionist painting. Now and again Aart Klein’s photographs show structures inclined toward abstraction, but in general one finds a strong relation with reality in his images. In that he exhibits his relationship with the documentary photographers of the GKf, tied as they were to the subject of their assignment.
After the war Klein and Austria experimented with photographing in theatres without flash. Their method had the reputation of being secret; they themselves called it the X-100 procedure. In fact it was very simple: slow films were developed in heated, undiluted paper developers, so that they were more sensitive to light. Klein later still applied this technique of underexposing and overdeveloping with faster films, which responded as though they were yet more sensitive to light. The thin negatives with high contrast effects were then printed on hard paper, to achieve his ‘graphic’ photos. Flash and filters were not used.
Aart Klein generally worked with a Leica SLR or a Hasselblad (6×6 cm). Lifting out details by cropping in the darkroom was among the possibilities that negative offered him.
Klein’s darkroom technique produced a highly visible, sharp grain structure, which became an essential photographic means of expression for him. For him, seven grains could form an image.
Although Aart Klein is best known for his white-black photography, for assignments he did work in colour also. He then worked with colour transparencies which he had developed by photo laboratories. In the 1980s he experimented with ways to obtain grain in colour photography, with stronger colour separation.
The salient detail of a barn in Zeeland, the rhythm of black lines created by the steel of a building under construction, the dark shadow of snow are all images by Aart Klein that have changed our vision of the landscape. It is not the reproduction of textures and materials that Aart Klein shows us, but the rendering of light intensities by means of an alternation of light and dark grains, in his characteristic and recognizable ‘signature’. With this, he occupies a unique position in Dutch photography.
Documentation
Primary bibliography
Kijkprikkels (november/december 1958) 231, p. 17, 21,24,41.
Aart Klein (foto’s), Herman Besselaar (tekst), Amsterdam Rotterdam. Twee steden rapsodie, Baarn (In Den Toren) z.j. (ca. 1959).
Aart Klein (foto’s), Klaas Graftdijk (tekst), Delta. Stromenland in beweging, Amersfoort (Roelofs Van Goor) 1967.
Anton Heuff (tekst), Aart Klein (foto’s), Haven van Rotterdam, Rotterdam (Havenbedrijf der Gemeente Rotterdam) 1978.
Pauline Terreehorst (tekst), Aart Klein (foto’s), Aart Klein, fotograaf, Utrecht (Reflex) 1986.
images in:
Vrij Nederland 28 april 1945, p. 396-397.
Hans Nesna, Aart Klein en Sem Presser, Zoo leeft Duitschland op de puinhoopen van het Derde Rijk, Amsterdam (Scheltens en Giltay) 1946.
Algemeen Handelsblad 3 september 1949.
Algemeen Handelsblad 10 september 1949.
Algemeen Handelsblad 17 september 1949.
Algemeen Handelsblad 27 januari 1950.
Algemeen Handelsblad 4 februari 1950.
Algemeen Handelsblad 1 maart 1950.
Algemeen Handelsblad 1 april 1950.
U.S. Camera Annual 1951, p. 95.
U.S. Camera Annual 1952, p. 202, 203.
Catalogus tent. Photo + Scène. Tweede Internationale Tentoonstelling voor Theater-Fotografie, Wiesbaden, 1953, pl. II.
Algemeen Handelsblad 28 november 1953.
Photography Annual 1953, p. 21.
Eric van der Steen, Alkmaar, Amsterdam (De Bezige Bij) 1954.
U.S. Camera 1954, p. 45.
Photography Year Book 1955, pl. 61, p. 166.
Photography Year Book 1956, pl. 169, p. 193.
Photography Annual 1956, p. 37.
Algemeen Handelsblad 15 december 1956.
Photography Year Book 1957, pl. 175, p. 200.
Algemeen Handelsblad 11 januari 1958.
Algemeen Handelsblad 22 februari 1958.
Algemeen Handelsblad 15 maart 1958.
Photography oktober 1958, p. 28, 61.
Photography Year Book 1958, pl. 55, p. 183.
Klaas Graftdijk, Paspoort voor de Delta, ‘s-Gravenhage (Shell Nederland) 1959, p. 4.
Photography Year Book 1959, pl.76, p.209.
Photography Year Book 1960, pl. 141 b, p. 223.
Han Hoekstra, Dag Amsterdam, Amsterdam (N.V. Het Parool) 1961.
Photography Year Book 1961, pl. 202 b, p. 239.
Gerrit Borgers e.a. (samenstelling), Speels ABC der Nederlanden, z.p. (Vereeniging ter bevordering van de Belangen des Boekhandels; Commissie voor de Collectieve Propaganda van het Nederlandse boek) 1962.
Eldert Willems, Nederland wordt groter, Amsterdam (De Bezige Bij) z.j. (ca. 1962).
Photography Year Book 1962, pl. 105, p. 208.
Sj. Groenman, Delta, Poort van Europa, Amersfoort (Roelofs Van Goor) z.j. (1963).
Han de Vries (samenstelling en vormgeving), Fotografie, in Drukkersweekblad en Autolijn (1963) 52 (kerstnummer), p. 64-66.
British Journal of Photography 10 januari 1964, omslag.
Die Welt 23 september 1964.
Drukkersweekblad en Autolijn (1964) 52 (kerstnummer), p. 14, 20-21, 34, 37b, 38b, 54-55, 56-57, 60-63, 73, 74b, 76-81, 86, 89, 92.
Photography Year Book 1964, pl. 96.
Fotoalmanach International 1964, p. 5.
Auteur onbekend, Verbindingen, Utrecht (Vrijzinnig Christelijke Jeugd Centrale) 1965.
Algemeen Handelsblad 30 juni 1965.
Auteur onbekend, Bent u links of rechts, Utrecht (Vrijzinnig Christelijke Jeugd Centrale) 1966.
A. Alberts, In de tijd gezet, z.p. (Algemene Nederlandse Grafische Bond) 1966, p. 40-41, 62, 77-79, 84, 86-92, 95.
Photography Year Book 1966, pl. 224.
Herman Besselaar, Bij het zachte zingen van de Semois, in Algemeen Handelsblad 25 maart 1967.
Photography Year Book 1967, pl. 111.
Delta. Photos: Aart Klein, in Camera 47 (maart 1968) 3, p. 26-32.
Drukkersweekblad en Autolijn (1968) 52 (kerstnummer).
L’Officiel de la photographie et du cinema (februari 1969) 169, p. 63-67.
A. Alberts, Semper Mare Navigandum; Amsterdam (Stoomvaart Mij. ‘Nederland’) 1970.
Randstad Data 2 (november 1971) 3.
Herman Besselaar (tekst), Aart Klein en Hans Samsom (foto’s), Molens van Nederland, Amsterdam (Kosmos) 1974.
Mark Haworth-Booth (ed.), The land. Twentieth century landscape photographers. Selected by Bill Brandt, Londen (Gordon Fraser) 1975, pl. 19.
Photography Year Book 1975, pl. 78-79.
Gasunie Engineering The Netherlands. A profile, Groningen (N.V. Nederlandse Gasunie) 1977.
Essobron 29 (oktober 1979).
Mathilde Visser, Het Portret door 35 Nederlandse fotografen, Amsterdam (Canon Photo Gallery) 1980.
GKf Bulletin (december 1980) 1.
Ute Eskildsen e.a., Subjektive Fotografie. Bilder der 50er Jahre, Essen (Museum Folkwang) 1984, p. 89.
Perspektief (juni 1987) 28/29, p. 61. Leo Divendal, José Rodrigues e.a., A priori fotografie, Amsterdam (Makkom) 1986, p. 61.
Jaarverslagen Centrale Suiker Mij. 1971-1986, Chemische Fabriek Naarden, Rabobank, Bührmann/Tetterode, Gemeente Amsterdam, Nederlandse Spoorwegen, Cacao-fabriek Van Houten, Van Gelder Papier.
Secondary bibliography
Joost Andriessen., Aart Klein: door de camera wit op zwart verbeelden, in Foto 15 (december 1960) 12, p. 618-623 (met foto’s).
Auteur onbekend, Aart Klein als ‘star’ in Engels foto-vakblad, in Algemeen Handelsblad 25 juli 1962.
F. Stoppelman, Aart Klein, in Focus 48 (8 november 1963) 23, p. 16-23 (met foto’s).
Star photographers, in Photography Year Book 1963, p. XI-XII, pi. 26-29.
H.S. (= Hans Schreien), Aart Klein GKf in de Heerlense Schuttershof, in Foto 19 (november 1964) 11, p. 541-550 (met foto’s).
Willem K. Coumans, Aart Klein in ‘De Schuttershof’. Werkelijkheid zien en vorm geven in de foto, in Dagblad van Noord Limburg 19 november 1964.
H.S., Over de fotograaf Aart Klein GKf, in Focus 50 (19 februari 1965) 4, p. 2-5 (met foto’s).
Adam Seide, Fotografiek in Frankfurt, in Focus 50 (1 oktober 1965) 20, p. 2-4.
Jaco Groot en Paul Mertz, Gesprek met Aart Klein, in Streven. Maandblad voor geestesleven en cultuur 19e jg., deel 1 (december 1965) 3, p. 238-241 (met foto’s).
Auteur onbekend, Aart Klein. Portfolio, in Creative Camera (mei 1970) 71, p. 144-149.
Willem K. Coumans, Aart Klein tekent met wit licht op zwart papier, in Foto 25 (december 1970) 12, p. 646-653.
Bert Sprenkeling, Aart Klein: een ‘grafisch’ fotograaf, in Het Parool 27 maart 1973.
Ton Frenken, Belangrijke foto’s van Aart Klein, in Brabants Dagblad 30 maart 1973.
Auteur onbekend, Aart Klein bewijst fotografisch kunstenaarschap, in NRC Handelsblad 28 april 1973.
Willem K. Coumans, De werkelijkheid van Aart Klein, in Foto 28 (mei 1973) 5, p. 32-33 (met foto’s).
R.A., Aart Kleinstraat, in NRC Handelsblad 27 juli 1973.
Catalogus tent. Aart Klein, Amsterdam (Stedelijk Museum) 1973.
Vera Illes, Fotograaf Aart Klein werd Japanofiel in NRC Handelsblad 18 januari 1974.
Auteur onbekend, De ondergedoken camera, in Vrij Nederland-bijvoegsel (15 mei 1976) 20, p.38.
Bas Roodnat, Het Portret (n) waar Aart Klein het eerst aan dacht, in NRC Handelsblad 11 september 1976.
Fritz Kempe, Der Niederlander Aart Klein und die Brücken in Hamburg, in Foto Magazin 29 (1 juni 1977) 6, p. 76-78.
Els Barents (red.), Fotografie in Nederland 1940-1975, Den Haag (Staatsuitgeverij) 1978.
Kees Broos, Flip Bool (red.), Fotografie in Nederland 1920-1940, Den Haag (Staatsuitgeverij) 1979, p.90, 140, 152.
Fritz Kempe, „Er gibt sehr viel mit sehr wenig” in MFM Moderne Fototechnik (augustus 1979) 8, p. 364-366.
Auteur onbekend, De illegale camera, Amsterdam (Gemeentearchief) 1980.
Fritz Kempe (inl.), Portfolio 1981, Amsterdam (Galerie Fiolet) 1981.
Els Barents, Tentoonstelling Aart Klein, in GKf Fotografen z.j. (1981) 4 (met foto’s).
Marleen Kox, Verslag onderzoek fotoarchieven. (Samengesteld in opdracht van de Stichting Nederlands Foto-Archief), Amsterdam, juli 1981.
George Walsh, Colin Naylor, Michael Held (eds.), Contemporary photographers, z.p. (MacMillan) 1982, p. 407-408.
Joop van Reeken, De ideale opdrachtfotografie van Aart Klein, in Foto (februari 1983) 2, p. 14-18 (met foto’s)
Pauline Terreehorst, Je hebt in je handen ‘n camera en een geweten, in De Volkskrant 3 augustus 1984.
Catalogus Fotobiennale Enschede. Amerikaanse en Nederlandse fotografie, Enschede (Stichting Fotobiennale Enschede) 1984, p. 46, 61-62.
Mariëtte Haveman, Bert Nienhuis, in Geschiedenis van de Nederlandse fotografie, Alphen aan den Rijn (Samsom) 1984 e.v.
Carla van der Stap, Maria Austria, in Geschiedenis van de Nederlandse fotografie, Alphen aan den Rijn (Samsom) 1984 e.v.
Louis Zweers, Dolf Kruger, in Geschiedenis van de Nederlandse fotografie, Alphen aan den Rijn (Samsom) 1984 e.v.
Rob Huibers, Inkomens van vrije fotografen. Fotografen over geld, in Foto 39 (oktober 1984) 10, p. 38-41.
Remco Campert (inl.), Amsterdam 1950-1959 20 fotografen, Amsterdam (Fragment) 1985 (met foto’s).
Rolf Bos, Aart Klein, fotograaf, in De Volkskrant 26 april 1986.
Bibeb, Fotograaf Aart Klein: „Ik heb me nooit laten voorschrijven hoe ik iets moest zien”, in Vrij Nederland 47 (26 april 1986), p. 5-6.
Willem Ellenbroek, Fotografen van de wederopbouw, in De Volkskrant 9 mei 1986.
Bas Roodnat, Het alledaagse in het helderste wit en diepste zwart, in NRC Handelsblad 14 mei 1986.
Charles Bels, Het goede fotoboek verkoopt zichzelf, in Het Binnenhof 7 juni 1986.
Mariëtte Haveman, Een gecensureerd expressionist. Aart Klein exponent van het modernisme, in Vrij Nederland boekenbijlage (12 juli 1986) 28, p. 15-16.
Mariëtte Haveman, Nederlandse architectuur fotografie 1930-1960, in Perspektief (september 1986) 25, p. 12-13, 22-23 (met foto’s).
Linda Roodenburg, Aart Klein – fotograaf, in Perspektief (september 1986) 25, p. 58-59.
Auteur onbekend, Aart Klein, in Perspektief (september 1986) 25, p. 66.
Auteur onbekend, Fotografie in de hoofdrol, NOS beeldspraak maakt portret van Aart Klein, in P/F Aktueel (februari 1987) 2, p.8-9.
Eddie Marsman, Een gemiste kans, in Perspektief (juni 1987) 28/29, p. 15-17.
Hripsimé Visser, Documentaire en monumentale foto-opdrachten in Nederland na 1945, in Perspektief (juni 1987) 28/29, p. 115-116.
Tineke de Ruiter, Aart Klein, in Ingeborg Th. Leijerzapf e.a., Roots & Turns. 20th Century photography in The Netherlands, Den Haag (SDU Publishers) 1988, p. 84-89, 169 (met foto’s).
Memberships
Vereniging voor Persfotografen en Filmoperateurs, van ca. 1935-1941.
NVF, van 1945-heden (medeoprichter).
Awards
1982 Joop Alblasprijs.
Exhibitions
1948 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Foto ’48.
1952 (g) Den Haag, Gemeentemuseum, Fotoschouw ’52.
1952 (g) Luzern, Kunsthaus, Weltausstellung der Photographie.
1953 (g) New York, Museum of Modern Art, Post-war European Photography.
1953 (g) Wiesbaden, Photo + Scène. Tweede Internationale Tentoonstelling voor Theater-Fotografie (rondreizende tentoonstelling).
1954/1955 (g) Saarbrücken, Staatliche Schule für Kunst und Handwerk, Subjektive Fotografie II.
1955 (g) New York, Museum of Modern Art, Family of Man.
1955/1957 (Engeland), C.S. Exhibition. (rondreizende tentoonstelling door Engeland).
1955 (g) Amsterdam, World Press Photo.
1956 Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Wij mensen.
1958 (g) Leiden, Prentenkabinet der Rijksuniversiteit Leiden, Foto’s GKf.
1960 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, (foto’s uit eigen collectie).
1961 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Dag Amsterdam.
1964 (e) Heerlen, De Schuttershof.
1964 (e) Hamburg, Staatliche Landesbildstelle, Bilder ohne Worte.
1965 (g) Frankfurt am Main, lm Haus des Deutschen Kunsthandwerks, Ausstellung 65. Amsterdam, Berlin, Frankfurt.
1965 (e) Arnhem, Academie voor Beeldende Kunst en Kunstnijverheid, Aart Klein, fotografie.
1965 (e) Enkhuizen, De Drommedaris, Fotos van Aart Klein & tekeningen van Malsen.
1968 (g) Bergamo, Mostra di Fotografia in Europa.
1968 (g) New York, Museum of Contemporary Crafts, The Door.
1968 (e) Parijs, Galerie Montalembert (Société Francaise de Photographie), Images Sans Mots.
1969 (e) Chatillon, Centre Culturel Communal, Images Sans Mots.
1972 (g) Parijs, Bibliothèque Nationale.
1972 (g) Lille, Photo Club L’oeil de Verre, David Hamilton, Alain Platey, Aart Klein.
1973 (e) Moskou, Polytechnisch Museum.
1973 (e) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Aart Klein.
1973 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Groepsfoto (GKf).
1973 (e) Parijs, Société Francaise de Photographie.
1974 (e) Hamburg, Staatliche Landesbildstelle, Fotografien in weiss auf schwarz.
1974 (g) Amsterdam, Galerie Fiolet, Aart Klein en Fr. Hidalgo.
1974 (e) Londen, The Photographers’ Gallery.
1975 (g) Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh, (De stad en zijn bewoners).
1975 (g) Londen, Victoria and Albert Museum, The Land: 20th Century Landscape Photographs Selected by Bill Brandt (rondreizende tentoonstelling).
1977 (g) Amsterdam, Vrije Universiteit, Brandt/Gibson/Klein.
1978 (g) Antwerpen, Galerie Paula Pia, (Aart Klein en Paul den Hollander).
1978 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Fotografie in Nederland 1940-1975.
1979 (g) Den Haag, Gemeentemuseum, Foto 1920-1940.
1979 (g) Amsterdam, Canon Photo Gallery, Nederlands Landschap.
1980 (g) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, (GKf beroepsvereniging voor fotografen).
1980 (g) Amsterdam, Paleis op de Dam, De illegale camera.
1980 (g) Amsterdam, Canon Photo Gallery, Het Portret.
1980 (g) Apeldoorn, Gemeentelijke Van Reekumgalerij, Het Portret.
1981 (e) Scheveningen, Galerie Kiek, Aart Klein.
1981 (g) Amsterdam, Galerie Fiolet, Prizes and prices.
1981 (e) Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Aart Klein foto’s.
1981 (g) Amsterdam, Museum Fodor, De Stad In Zwart/Wit.
1982 (e) Amsterdam, Nieuwe Kerk, Joop Alblas Prijs.
1982 (e) Keulen, Kunstverein Josef-Hauberich-Hof 1, Photo Art I (presentatie Benteler Galleries inc. Houston).
1983 (e) Baarn, Kasteel Groeneveld.
1984 (g) Enschede, Fotobiennale Enschede.
1984 (g) San Francisco, Museum of Art, Subjektive Fotografie: images of the 50 ‘s.
1984 (g) Houston, Sarah Campbell Blaffer Gallery, Subjektive Fotografie: images of the 50’s.
1984/1985 (g) Essen, Museum Folkwang, Subjektive Fotografie: images of the 50 ‘s.
1985 (g) Amsterdam, Gemeentearchief, Amsterdam 1950-1959 20 fotografen.
1986 (e) Amsterdam, Boekhandel De Verbeelding, Aart Klein (Foto ’86).
1986 (g) Amsterdam, Olympus Gallery, Sold Photographs (Foto ’86).
1986 (g) Amsterdam, Makkom, A Priori Fotografie.
1986 (e) Breda, De Beyerd, Aart Klein.
1986 (g) Rotterdam, Galerie Westersingel 8, Nederlandse architectuurfotografie 1930-1960.
1988 (g) Houston, Sarah Campbell Blaffer Gallery, Roots & Turns. 20th Century photography in The Netherlands.
Radio and television programs
23 januari 1983, Vroege Vogels (VARA radio).
10 maart 1987, Beeldspraak (NOS televisie).
Sources
Amsterdam, Aart Klein, documentatie en mondelinge informatie.
Leiden, Prentenkabinet, bibliotheek en documentatiebestand.
Collections
Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum.
Amsterdam, Maria Austria Archief (negatieven).
Den Haag, Rijksdienst Beeldende Kunst.
Hamburg, Museum Kunst und Gewerbe.
Houston, Museum of Fine Arts.
Leiden, Prentenkabinet van de Rijksuniversiteit.
Londen, Victoria and Albert Museum.
Parijs, Bibliothèque Nationale.