Adri (Aadje) Scholten Bruce was a very accomplished woman growing up in war-torn Holland. At an early age she learned to make do with very little. Adri, nicknamed Aadje in Dutch meaning littlest in her family even though Aadje was nearly 6 feet tall, enjoyed cooking, sewing, knitting, painting, playing the piano, hiking and skiing. She spoke 5 languages, her native Dutch, German, French, English and Bahara, the language spoken in much of Malaysia and Indonesia. On February 7, 1959 she married Douglas Bruce, a geologist from Scotland and since he was one of the first people Shell Oil sent into an area they were interested in developing, Aadje lived in many Middle Eastern and North Africa countries in rather primitive conditions. Aadje, being very friendly and eager to learn about local customs and culture, made friends everywhere she went. She embraced their ways while teaching them hers and lifelong friendships were made.
Aadje was well-educated having 2 BA's in art, one from Holland and another from Australia, and also a Master's degree in Art from Australia. Many of Aadje's works featured "found" objects, things most people simply threw away--baby rattles, bottle caps, kitchen utensils, buttons, etc. Aadje's renderings allowed the viewer to "see the extra-ordinary through the ordinary" and many of her works feature social and environmental themes.
One work entitled "Tea and Sympathy" dealt with women's concerns. Chairs covered in used tea bags illustrated that some societies never seriously tried to deal with conditions facing women. Instead they offered refreshments and soothing words to placate and ignore the plight of women.
Another theme in her work concerns the environment. In the exhibition Littoral, Aadje used floating used plastic bags and plastic caps resembling jelly fish to call attention to the harm man is doing to his natural surroundings with his wasteful and thoughtless behavior.
Aadje's work was featured in several galleries in Australia and she had over 80 exhibits and more than 70 published references to her name, making her well-known in the art world.
Having seen much of the world, Aadje and Doug selected Perth, Australia as a place to settle down but they continued to make frequent trips abroad to see family and friends. Combining love of family and skiing, they made annual trips to Colorado where their son Ian and his family lived and worked in Vail Valley. Son Pieter also had moved to Colorado. Daughter Stephanie and her family reside in Western Australia near Margaret's River.
Aadje's parents were Adriaan Dirk Scholten and Pieternella de Rooij Scholten. They and a sister Cornelia Maria Scholten preceded her in death. A brother, Adriaan Scholten known to the family as Pieter, survives. Other survivors are her husband Doug of Perth, Australia, their children Pieter and Ian of Colorado, USA and Stephanie of Australia, and 5 grandchildren, Patrick, Connal, Niall, Tianna and Stewart.
On Aadje's death announcement is written
"She saw beauty and laughter in everything even where others could not. She will find it."
Aadje was well-educated having 2 BA's in art, one from Holland and another from Australia, and also a Master's degree in Art from Australia. Many of Aadje's works featured "found" objects, things most people simply threw away--baby rattles, bottle caps, kitchen utensils, buttons, etc. Aadje's renderings allowed the viewer to "see the extra-ordinary through the ordinary" and many of her works feature social and environmental themes.
One work entitled "Tea and Sympathy" dealt with women's concerns. Chairs covered in used tea bags illustrated that some societies never seriously tried to deal with conditions facing women. Instead they offered refreshments and soothing words to placate and ignore the plight of women.
Another theme in her work concerns the environment. In the exhibition Littoral, Aadje used floating used plastic bags and plastic caps resembling jelly fish to call attention to the harm man is doing to his natural surroundings with his wasteful and thoughtless behavior.
Aadje's work was featured in several galleries in Australia and she had over 80 exhibits and more than 70 published references to her name, making her well-known in the art world.
Having seen much of the world, Aadje and Doug selected Perth, Australia as a place to settle down but they continued to make frequent trips abroad to see family and friends. Combining love of family and skiing, they made annual trips to Colorado where their son Ian and his family lived and worked in Vail Valley. Son Pieter also had moved to Colorado. Daughter Stephanie and her family reside in Western Australia near Margaret's River.
Aadje's parents were Adriaan Dirk Scholten and Pieternella de Rooij Scholten. They and a sister Cornelia Maria Scholten preceded her in death. A brother, Adriaan Scholten known to the family as Pieter, survives. Other survivors are her husband Doug of Perth, Australia, their children Pieter and Ian of Colorado, USA and Stephanie of Australia, and 5 grandchildren, Patrick, Connal, Niall, Tianna and Stewart.
On Aadje's death announcement is written
"She saw beauty and laughter in everything even where others could not. She will find it."
Adri (Aadje) Scholten Bruce was a very accomplished woman growing up in war-torn Holland. At an early age she learned to make do with very little. Adri, nicknamed Aadje in Dutch meaning littlest in her family even though Aadje was nearly 6 feet tall, enjoyed cooking, sewing, knitting, painting, playing the piano, hiking and skiing. She spoke 5 languages, her native Dutch, German, French, English and Bahara, the language spoken in much of Malaysia and Indonesia. On February 7, 1959 she married Douglas Bruce, a geologist from Scotland and since he was one of the first people Shell Oil sent into an area they were interested in developing, Aadje lived in many Middle Eastern and North Africa countries in rather primitive conditions. Aadje, being very friendly and eager to learn about local customs and culture, made friends everywhere she went. She embraced their ways while teaching them hers and lifelong friendships were made.
Aadje was well-educated having 2 BA's in art, one from Holland and another from Australia, and also a Master's degree in Art from Australia. Many of Aadje's works featured "found" objects, things most people simply threw away--baby rattles, bottle caps, kitchen utensils, buttons, etc. Aadje's renderings allowed the viewer to "see the extra-ordinary through the ordinary" and many of her works feature social and environmental themes.
One work entitled "Tea and Sympathy" dealt with women's concerns. Chairs covered in used tea bags illustrated that some societies never seriously tried to deal with conditions facing women. Instead they offered refreshments and soothing words to placate and ignore the plight of women.
Another theme in her work concerns the environment. In the exhibition Littoral, Aadje used floating used plastic bags and plastic caps resembling jelly fish to call attention to the harm man is doing to his natural surroundings with his wasteful and thoughtless behavior.
Aadje's work was featured in several galleries in Australia and she had over 80 exhibits and more than 70 published references to her name, making her well-known in the art world.
Having seen much of the world, Aadje and Doug selected Perth, Australia as a place to settle down but they continued to make frequent trips abroad to see family and friends. Combining love of family and skiing, they made annual trips to Colorado where their son Ian and his family lived and worked in Vail Valley. Son Pieter also had moved to Colorado. Daughter Stephanie and her family reside in Western Australia near Margaret's River.
Aadje's parents were Adriaan Dirk Scholten and Pieternella de Rooij Scholten. They and a sister Cornelia Maria Scholten preceded her in death. A brother, Adriaan Scholten known to the family as Pieter, survives. Other survivors are her husband Doug of Perth, Australia, their children Pieter and Ian of Colorado, USA and Stephanie of Australia, and 5 grandchildren, Patrick, Connal, Niall, Tianna and Stewart.
On Aadje's death announcement is written
"She saw beauty and laughter in everything even where others could not. She will find it."
Aadje was well-educated having 2 BA's in art, one from Holland and another from Australia, and also a Master's degree in Art from Australia. Many of Aadje's works featured "found" objects, things most people simply threw away--baby rattles, bottle caps, kitchen utensils, buttons, etc. Aadje's renderings allowed the viewer to "see the extra-ordinary through the ordinary" and many of her works feature social and environmental themes.
One work entitled "Tea and Sympathy" dealt with women's concerns. Chairs covered in used tea bags illustrated that some societies never seriously tried to deal with conditions facing women. Instead they offered refreshments and soothing words to placate and ignore the plight of women.
Another theme in her work concerns the environment. In the exhibition Littoral, Aadje used floating used plastic bags and plastic caps resembling jelly fish to call attention to the harm man is doing to his natural surroundings with his wasteful and thoughtless behavior.
Aadje's work was featured in several galleries in Australia and she had over 80 exhibits and more than 70 published references to her name, making her well-known in the art world.
Having seen much of the world, Aadje and Doug selected Perth, Australia as a place to settle down but they continued to make frequent trips abroad to see family and friends. Combining love of family and skiing, they made annual trips to Colorado where their son Ian and his family lived and worked in Vail Valley. Son Pieter also had moved to Colorado. Daughter Stephanie and her family reside in Western Australia near Margaret's River.
Aadje's parents were Adriaan Dirk Scholten and Pieternella de Rooij Scholten. They and a sister Cornelia Maria Scholten preceded her in death. A brother, Adriaan Scholten known to the family as Pieter, survives. Other survivors are her husband Doug of Perth, Australia, their children Pieter and Ian of Colorado, USA and Stephanie of Australia, and 5 grandchildren, Patrick, Connal, Niall, Tianna and Stewart.
On Aadje's death announcement is written
"She saw beauty and laughter in everything even where others could not. She will find it."
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