For over thirty years, Rotterdam gallerist Cokkie Snoei played an important role in the city’s artistic climate. Shown at Kunsthal Rotterdam from Saturday 14 October, the exhibition ‘Fancy Some Friction, Honey?’, presents the work of 33 artists personally selected by Cokkie Snoei and represented by her gallery. The selected works reflect the quirky choices Cokkie has constantly made since the start of her career, her personal views, and the spirit of the times during the various decades. According to Cokkie, art should be funny, bizarre, perhaps even ugly, but never boring or predictable.
For 33 years, Cokkie Snoei and her gallery had a major impact on the artistic and cultural climate of Rotterdam and beyond. After working as a copywriter and fundraiser, she established her own art agency in 1985. She started out with a portfolio of twelve Rotterdam artists whose work she wanted to bring to the attention of entrepreneurs in search of high-quality art for their office spaces. Although successful, Cokkie found no satisfaction in this approach. In 1989, she boldly opened an ambitiously set-up gallery in the Rotterdam street Witte de Withstraat, where she was able to operate as a connecting factor and actually help artists get ahead.
Against the grain
At a time when photography was not yet taken seriously as an artform, Cokkie was the first gallerist in the Netherlands to show work by now internationally renowned artists like Nan Goldin, Claude Cahun, and Larry Clark. Presenting a mix of established and new, unknown artists, she invariably selected bold and outspoken work that ventured beyond the beaten path. Many of these artists reflected the rough edges of society. Her focus was on controversial subjects such as sexuality, gender identity, and power relations. The art had to go against the grain, provoke, and excite, as well as challenge preconceived ideas of what art should be. This is clearly palpable in the exhibition ‘Fancy Some Friction, Honey?’, which will show photographs, films, drawings, paintings, sculptures, and installations by 33 artists, covering 33 years of Cokkie Snoei’s gallery.
Artists featured in ‘Fancy Some Friction, Honey?’
Andres Serrano, Benny Merris, Bert Sissingh, Bianca Sistermans, Boris Mikhailov, C.A. Wertheim, Carolee Schneemann, Claude Cahun, Douglas Kolk, Heike Kati Barath, Jason Fox, Koen Taselaar, Koes Staassen, Larry Clark, Lee Miller, Lily van der Stokker, Madeleine Berkhemer, Markus Selg, Michael Bauer, Nan Goldin, Norbert Bisky, Pam Emmerik, Paul M Smith, Peter Martens, Pierre Molinier, Pieter Hugo, Risk Hazekamp, Sam Hersbach, Sef Peeters, Tim Breukers, Tracey Snelling, Umar Rashid (Frohawk Two Feathers), William Anthony.
Free magazine
To accompany the exhibition ‘Fancy Some Friction, Honey?’ 33 Years of Cokkie Snoei’s Gallery, a richly illustrated magazine will be published with contributions by various artists and collectors, describing their personal experiences with Cokkie Snoei. This magazine, designed by 75B, will be available at the Kunsthal for free.
Press
