Daan Padmos

Daan Padmos was born and raised in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where he worked in that city's famous harbor while putting himself through art school. We met in 1979, during his first visit to New York City, got married a year later, and began a family in Schiedam, just outside Rotterdam, where Daan's first large-scale steel sculpture, called "Paper Clips," was installed outside the town's main office building. We moved to the States in 1985, settling in Montrose, where Daan built himself a studio and transformed a nondescript little house into a sun-filled modern home. His first commission in Westchester, titled "Time Sharing, " is still standing in the north corner of Riverfront Green Park in Peekskill. His second large-scale work, "Studio Chair," in Yonkers, is also close to the river that Daan had come to know so well while kayaking in the Croton-to-Cold Spring areas. Daan loved the Hudson, and just about any other body of water where he could sail or paddle, almost as much as he loved art and music. He was a talented saxophone player who could pick up any tune and play by ear. And he was a builder — of houses and sculptures and dreams — who did his best to create something beautiful in this world.

Daan passed away in his home, after a yearlong battle with lung cancer. He will be mourned in the Netherlands by his brothers, Hans, Rien and Gus, and his sister, Anke, and dearly missed in this country by his sons, Alexander and Daniel, and by me, his wife of 42 years.

A memorial ceremony will take place at Carter's Funeral Home in Montrose, New York, on May 15, between 11AM and 1PM. The family is requesting all attendees wear a face mask. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Daan's memory to the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (iaslc.org) or to Riverkeeper.org

More about Daan's life and work can be found in the May 2022 online and print editions of River Journal North.