Paul Citroen

Portrait of painter, art dealer, writer, graphic designer, photographer and teacher Paul Citroen. The half-Dutch artist, born and raised in Berlin in the beginning of last century, is described and defined by a museum director, a researcher of the Nederlands Fotomuseum, two former students and an ex-model. This produces the image of a self-confident, but anything but conceited all-rounder, with a passion for ‘svelte, big-eyed women’. The interviews are crosscut with examples of his work - including a small boat he painted when he was ten, and his world-renowned photo collage Metropolis - as well as excerpts from his book Notities van een schilder. The film also includes archive footage of Citroen in action: characteristically whispering while drawing and, advanced in years, painting a portrait of Hildegard Knef, during a talkshow hosted by Willem Duys.