Anne Van Kleeck was an American sculptor known for her work in cast bronze, ceramics, and mixed media. Born in Marion, Ohio, she studied at Ohio Wesleyan University (B.A.) and Ohio State University (M.A.) before beginning her career as an art instructor and assistant professor of fine arts at the Columbus Art School and Ohio Wesleyan University.
In 1957, Van Kleeck traveled to Venice to study bronze casting, beaten iron, and mosaic techniques, including work at the Istituto del Veneto. During this period, she collaborated with an Italian foundry expert to establish a small foundry on the island of Murano, where she produced bronzes for a solo exhibition in Venice.
By 1959, she had relocated to Berkeley, California, where she maintained a studio equipped for bronze casting. Although skilled in stone carving, welded metal, and beaten iron, Van Kleeck favored cast bronze as her primary medium. Among her major public works is a 20-foot bronze sculpture of Saint Clare commissioned by the city of Santa Clara, California, in 1965.
Her work was exhibited internationally across Europe, South America, Japan, and the United States, and is held in numerous public and private collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art. In 1960, she was honored with an invitational exhibition at the Galleria dell’Opera Bevilacqua La Masa. She was also active in the Bay Area art scene, exhibiting alongside artists such as Ruth Asawa and Gary Knox Bennett.
Van Kleeck continued to exhibit widely, including in Sarasota, Palm Beach, and West Palm Beach, Florida. She lived much of her life in California before spending her later years in Florida.