Mr. Bean

Paul Panhuysen (1934, Borgharen) studied painting and monumental design at the Jan van Eyck Academy in Maastricht from 1954 till 1959. At the same time, he studied art sociology at the University of Utrecht. Following that, he was, successively, the director of the Fine Arts Academy in Leeuwarden; and a curator and head of education and public relations for the Den Haag City Museum and for the Van Abbe Museum in Eindhoven. In addition, he continued to paint and make collages. In 1965 he founded the artist group "De Bende van de Blauwe Hand." This group, which was closely related to Fluxus, presented exhibitions, environments and happenings in museums and galleries. Starting in 1965, he presented "situations" meant to involve the audience, and in 1968, he started the Maciunas Quartet, who are still making experimental music. In the early seventies, Panhuysen worked as an advisory artist with urban development teams and develo .dped systematic ordering systems and mathematical series that he has continued to use in his work as an artist. In addition, Panhuysen's work shows a predilection for found objects and the element of chance. To an increasing degree, Panhuysen has been concentrating on sound art, which has come to occupy an important place in his visual art work. He has presented his Long String Installations, which are played in concerts personally and in exhibitions as automats,worldwide since 1982: a.o. in Boston, Washington D.C., Dresden, Berlin, Hannover, Linz, Ferrara, Barcelona, Lodz, Warsaw, Moskow, Paris, New Yor .èk, San Francisco, Tokyo, Kobe, Kyoto, Lyon, Rome, Prague and Mexico-city. These installations are set-up in indoor or outdoor spaces for anywhere from 1 to 40 days. They utilize the site specific properties and architectural prospects of the location. " Singing the World of Existence " Musee d'art Contemporain, Lyon, France, 1998 Since 1989 Panhuysen developes artworks in which he confronts the audience with the creativity, intelligence and communicational skills of animals, especially of birds. In 1980, Panhuysen founded Het Apollohuis, and since then till 1997, he has been the director of this internationally oriented podium where artists from divergent disciplines can present their work. In 1996 he received the Cultural Award of Noord-Brabant and in1998 he became Companion of the Order of the Dutch Lion.