herman de vries works and lives with his wife Susanne in Eschenau, Germany. He writes his name in lower-case 'to avoid hierarchy'. de vries started painting in the late 1950s. He categorises these paintings as 'informal'. Using no figuration or color, the paintings are his first steps towards randomness as a principle of order. This principle aims to achieve absolute objectivity, and has had a central role throughout his artistic career. Later, his concern for the (disrupted) relation between humanity and nature takes a leading role in his work.