Jan was one of a half dozen classmates who escaped from Europe at the onset of World War II. His family went from the Netherlands to London, where the Dutch government in exile commissioned his father to become commandant of the six islands of the Dutch West Indies. Refineries there were a target of German submarines. Following the war, the family moved to the United States, where Jan attended Pomfret School and then Princeton.

At Princeton, Jan joined Cloister Inn. Senior year he roomed with Allen Martin, John Forbes, and Jean-Pierre Cauvin. He earned a doctorate in education at Harvard, which led to his becoming a superintendent of schools in several Maine school districts. When Jan found himself reprimanding a subordinate in a meeting, he said, he decided he should retire.

He moved from studying painting part time to full time in New England, Hawaii, and New York City, and established a studio in Portland, Maine. His joyful, mostly abstract paintings were a combination of French Fauvists and a contemporary Dutch school. Jan played tournament bridge around the country with his companion of 30 years, Motoko Schoning.

Jan died Nov. 21, 2022, of a heart attack. He is survived by Motoko, a son from a prior marriage, one brother, and one sister.

Class Year: 
Undergraduate Class of 1957