Johan Conrad Theodoor Kickert tot den Egmond was born in The Hague on November 1882, he died in Paris on 26 June 1965. A self-taught painter, Kickert went to Domburg, together with Jan Toorop, and in Bergen. He was one of the first artists, who worked in the style of cubism. In 1910, he established with Piet Mondriaan, Jan Sluyters and Jan Toorop, the Moderne Kunstkring, advocating avant-garde art. Between 1912 and 1913, they organised various exhibitions in the Stedelijk Museum. In 1912 Kickert moved to Paris, where he lived in a studio in Montparnasse. Kickert moved around prestigious art societies and exhibited with painters, like Georges Braque, Raoul Dufy, Henri Matisse, Maurice Utrillo, Kees van Dongen en Maurice Vlaminck. During the First World War, he returned to the Netherlands but in 1919 he settled permanently in France. He nevertheless frequently visited the Netherlands. In the 1920s Kickert began adopting a more naturalistic style. Among his subjects were figures, landscapes and still lifes. Although he was successful in France, Kickert sank into oblivion in his homeland. His work is included in the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag.