Secret of Vermeer’s blue uncovered. 'Woman in Blue Reading a Letter' fully restored by the Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam, May 2012
During the meticulous restoration of Woman in Blue Reading a Letter (1663-64), one of the Rijksmuseum’s four Vermeer masterpieces, a number of surprising details were uncovered. Vermeer’s characteristically intense use of blue, for example, can now be viewed in all of its magnificent nuances for the first time in centuries. In addition, several pearls that were added in 1928 were removed, and other details that had disappeared were restored. Read more
Acquisition: Pure luxury on paper. Rijksmuseum acquires 580 Japanese prints
Amsterdam, March 2012
From 8 May, the Rijksmuseum will be exhibiting a selection of 30 works from two new donations of Japanese prints. Luxury, subtlety, technical perfection, expressiveness and, of course, beautiful Japanese women all feature prominently in these new collections, recently donated by two leading collectors. Jan Willem Goslings (1943-2011) and his wife brought together an extraordinary collection of surimono prints. Collector H.C. Bos (1926-2007) had a penchant for classical depictions of luxuriously dressed Japanese women from the late 19th century. Read more
Maritime masterpiece temporarily returned to England after 3.5 centuries. Peacetime loan of former war booty
Amsterdam, March 2012
This afternoon, the Rijksmuseum handed over a unique loan to the National Maritime Museum in London. After 345 years, the ‘stern carvings decoration’ of the flagship the Royal Charles has been returned to England. In June 1667, the wooden decoration (3m wide and 2m tall, weighing 750kg) was taken in triumph to the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands by Dutch maritime hero Michiel de Ruyter. The piece will be one of the highlights of the Royal River. Power, Pageantry and the Thames exhibition opening on 27 April. Read more
Dutch Flowers. 17th-century floral splendour at Rijksmuseum Schiphol
Amsterdam, March 2012
Following the Dutch Winters exhibition, the Rijksmuseum annex at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is going to present another characteristic aspect of the Netherlands, namely flowers, in the Dutch Flowers exhibition from 21 March to 25 June 2012. Nine exuberant ‘flower pieces’ from the museum’s collection that used to adorn the homes of the 17th-century economic elite are now in full bloom at the airport. Read more
The Rijksmuseum celebrates 400 years of the Netherlands and Turkey
Amsterdam, February 2012
In observance of the 400-year anniversary of diplomatic relations between Turkey and the Netherlands, the Rijksmuseum presents two special exhibitions. OTTOMANIA: The Turkish world through Western eyes presents the Turkey of old, depicted in over 35 special prints from the Rijksmuseum collection. The presentation Ahmet Polat: Modern Turkey paints a picture of Turkey today, with 10 impressive portraits of young Dutch-born Turkish people, trying their luck in Turkey. Read more
Rijksmuseum exhibits Rembrandt and Vermeer in Turkey for the first time
Amsterdam, January 2012
For the first time, the Rijksmuseum is organising an exhibition on the Dutch Golden Age in Turkey, including five paintings by Rembrandt and The love letter by Vermeer. Over 100 masterpieces from the Rijksmuseum collection will be on display in Sakip Sabanci Museum in Istanbul from 21 February to 10 June 2012. The exhibition is part of the festivities marking 400 years of diplomatic relations between Turkey and the Netherlands. Read more
Dancing Shiva X-rayed. Indian masterpiece shown to be solid bronze
Amsterdam, January 2012
Research recently revealed that the Rijksmuseum’s monumental bronze statue of Shiva was cast in solid bronze. The thousand year-old temple statue was X-rayed, along with the lorry transporting it, in the most powerful X-ray tunnel for containers of the Rotterdam customs authority. It is the first research of its kind on a museological masterpiece. At 153 cm x 114.5 cm, the Rijksmuseum’s Shiva is the largest known bronze statue from the Chola Dynasty (9th to 12th century) kept in a museological collection outside of India. Read more
Glaser Heirs Sell Van de Velde II Painting Back to the Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam, December 2011
Following the restitution of the Jan Van de Velde II painting A Winter Landscape to the heirs of Professor Dr. Curt Glaser, his heirs have now sold the artwork back to the Rijksmuseum. The agreement follows the restitution of the artwork as recommended by the Dutch Restitutions Committee which found that it had been sold due to Nazi persecution in May 1933 auctions in Berlin. Read more
Special Rijksmuseum acquisition
Amsterdam, December 2011
The Rijksmuseum has acquired an undisputed masterpiece for the new arrangement of the museum’s exhibits. The object in question is a unique lifelike Flemish terracotta bust of Mary in mourning (ca. 1500-1510), called Our Lady of Sorrows. This recent acquisition was made possible thanks to funding from the BankGiro lottery. The bust will be displayed from today as part of the Rijksmuseum’s winter exhibition A divine gift.
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Dutch Winters at Schiphol. Rijksmuseum exhibits harsh, yet atmospheric 19th century winters
Amsterdam, December 2011
From 21 December 2011 to 26 March 2012, the Rijksmuseum will be presenting the Dutch Winters exhibition at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The evolution of the 19th-century winter landscape will be displayed by means of eight atmospheric paintings. Read more
First Rijksmuseum exhibition in Latin America. Escher and contemporaries in Mexico City
Amsterdam, November 2011
For the first time ever, the Rijksmuseum is organising an exhibition in Latin America. The exhibition M.C. Escher and Contemporaries will be held in the Museo Nacional de Arte in Mexico City from 24 November 2011 to 4 March 2012. The Rijksmuseum has a selection of graphic works in its collection that are representative of the work of Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972), including iconic works such as Drawing Hands, Up and Down and Belvedere. Although his prints have been reproduced endlessly on posters and picture postcards, the originals have rarely been exhibited. Read more
Philips sheds new light on Night Watch
Amsterdam, October 2011
Starting on October 26, one of the world’s most renowned paintings will be bathed in a new light. Philips, Founder of the renovated Amsterdam Rijksmuseum, presents Rembrandt van Rijn’s Night Watch in innovative LED light, bringing out the best of the painting’s color palette while offering increased sustainability and energy efficiency. Through the project, the two Masters of Light are reinforcing their intensive collaboration aimed at joint innovation in the area of LED lighting, setting the new standard for museum lighting. Read more
The Mayor. An everyday office photographed by Dana Lixenberg. Exhibition organised by the Rijksmuseum & NRC Handelsblad
Amsterdam, October 2011
For this year’s Document Nederland, the photo-documentary produced annually by the Rijksmuseum and the daily newspaper NRC Handelsblad, Dana Lixenberg travelled for a year across the Netherlands to create a portrait of the office of mayor. She met and portrayed male and female mayors in 22 different municipalities in all of the Dutch provinces – going from Amsterdam to Zeewolde, and from Ferwerderadeel to Kerkrade. Read more
Frozen for three centuries. Weapons, goods, tools and personal belongings from Nova Zembla
Amsterdam, September 2011
Starting on 22 November, the Rijksmuseum will be exhibiting roughly 75 original objects from Nova Zembla. The objects were left on the island in 1597, after Willem Barentsz had overwintered there with his crew, and were found three centuries later. Weapons, goods, tools and personal belongings will be on display. The exhibition will also include new work by British artist Siân Bowen, who took inspiration from prints that were also found on Nova Zembla. Read more
Winter Tales in Vienna. Rijksmuseum largest contributing loaning institution to exhibition at Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna
Amsterdam, September 2011
Providing a total of 17 paintings, the Rijksmuseum is making the largest contribution of loaning institutions to the exhibition Winter Tales: Depictions of Winter in European Art from Bruegel to Beuys, which was organised by former Rijksmuseum Director in Chief Ronald de Leeuw on behalf of Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. More than 180 objects, ranging from paintings to a sleigh, tell the story of European winters from 1450 to the present. Read more
Breitner: Pioneer of Street Photography
Amsterdam, September 2011
For the first time in France, the Rijksmuseum, in collaboration with the Institut Néerlandais, has mounted a large retrospective exhibition of photographs taken around 1900 by the Dutch artist George Hendrik Breitner (1857-1923). Breitner is known mainly as a painter of cityscapes, nudes and genre studies. In the present exhibition, however, he emerges as one of the most intriguing photographers of his day, who recorded life in Amsterdam and other large cities such as Paris and Berlin in an eminently modern and personal style. The exhibition runs from 3 November 2011 to 22 January 2012, during Paris Photo, as part of the VIP programme of this major international photo fair. Read more
The Rijksmuseum presents: 'Johan Maurits & Frans Post. Two Dutchmen in Brazil'
Amsterdam, September 2011
Johan Maurits, Prince of Nassau-Siegen, also known as 'The Brazilian', served as governor of the Dutch possessions in Brazil from 1637 to 1644. He founded the town of Mauritsstad, commissioned the construction of a splendid palace and led the colony as an enlightened official. Artist Frans Post travelled along with the governor's entourage, documenting not only military conquests, but also the exotic flora and fauna. His drawings served as the basis for the scientific book by Casper Barlaeus, commissioned by Johan Maurits, which to this day remains one of the most significant books about Brazil. The Rijksmuseum will exhibit 18 paintings and prints by Post and several of his contemporaries, complemented by a unique presentation of parchment manuscripts from Johan Maurits' palace in Brazil. Read more
Acquisition: Rijksmuseum acquires a highlight of European silversmithery
Amsterdam, September 2011
The Rijksmuseum has succeeded in acquiring two extraordinary silver and gold-plated cups in the form of globes being carried. The 17th century cups are a highlight of European silversmithery. Depicting the discoveries of the Dutch seamen and astronomers of the Golden Age, these cups are unique. The Rijksmuseum purchased the cups in part thanks to grants from the Rijksmuseum Fund (with the support of the BankGiro Loterij lottery), the Mondriaan Foundation, the Vereniging Rembrandt independent art fund (with the support of the Prins Bernhard Fonds fund), the SNS REAAL Fonds fund and the VSBfonds fund. The cups are on display in the Philips Wing of the Rijksmuseum. Read more
Unknown portrait discovered under Goya’s masterpiece in the Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam, September 2011
An innovative method for examining paintings has revealed a hitherto unknown painting beneath Goya’s Portrait of Don Ramón Satué, one of his most celebrated masterpieces and the only painting by this famous Spanish artist in The Netherlands. The hidden portrait, which is almost certainly also by Goya himself, was brought to light using Scanning Macro X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometry, a new technique developed by the University of Antwerp and the Delft University of Technology. Read more
Dutch Girls. Top models of the Dutch Golden Age
Amsterdam, August 2011
From 7 September to 12 December, the exhibition Dutch Girls will feature at the Schiphol Airport annex of the Rijksmuseum. The exhibition will consist of a small collection of nine well-to-do, leading models from the Golden Age, most stunningly painted by among others Frans Hals, Caesar van Everdingen, Isaak Luttichuys, and Barholomeus van der Helst. Read more
Acquisition: The bone chair by Joris Laarman
The Rijksmuseum has acquired the prototype to the now world-famous Bone Chair by Joris Laarman. Designed in 2006 by the Dutch designer Joris Laarman (1979), the Bone Chair soon became an icon. Commissioned by Droog Design and the Friedmanbenda gallery, twelve chairs were made. It did not take long before they found their way to major design collections worldwide. The Bone Chair is on long-term loan to the Rijksmuseum and the paper prototype of the chair was donated by Droog Design and Joris Laarman. Both the chair and the prototype will be on display at the Rijksmuseum from 30 August to 26 September 2011. Read more
Acquisition: Dick Bruna at the Rijksmuseum. Artist loans large selection of his work to the museum
Amsterdam, July 2011
Graphic designer, illustrator and author of children’s books Dick Bruna (1927) has agreed a long-term loan of a selection of his work to the Print Room of the Rijksmuseum, the national museum of the Netherlands. His designs for paperback covers, advertising material and children’s books, obviously including Miffy, cover the period from 1953 to 2007. The museum has obtained design sketches and fully developed drawings as well as unused drawings as part of the loan. Read more
For the first time: Rembrandt and Degas. Two young artists
Amsterdam, June 2011
Although it is well known that the famous French impressionist painter Edgar Degas (1834-1917) was inspired by Rembrandt, the forthcoming exhibition will be the first actually devoted to Rembrandt’s influence on Degas. This summer, the Rijksmuseum will present a series of self-portraits of the two artists when they were young. Rarely displayed together, the Degas self-portraits originate from internationally renowned collections such as those at The Metropolitan Museum in New York, The National Gallery of Art in Washington and The Getty Museum in Los Angeles. One of the Degas self-portraits is particularly special, as it comes from a private collection and has never been shown before. Including more than 20 individual pieces, the exhibition will take place at the Rijksmuseum from 1 July to 23 October 2011. Read more
Masterpieces on Paper: The Secret of Lines
Amsterdam, June 2011
As part of its Masterpieces on Paper series, the Rijksmuseum presents the exhibition The Secret of Lines. This minor exhibition features 18 masterfully crafted 16th- and 17th-century prints and drawings from the Rijksmuseum collection, which demonstrate the incredible artistic versatility of lines. Whether created in a restrained or ebullient style using a drawing pen or an etching needle, each line embodies the signature of its creator. Read more
Rijksmuseum exhibits rare 17th century masterpiece
Amsterdam, June 2011
In celebration of the start of summer, the Rijksmuseum has organised the premier exhibition of the 17th-century masterpiece Girl with a Large Hat (1645-50) by Caesar van Everdingen. Acquired more than a year ago with support from the lottery BankGiro Loterij, the painting has since undergone extensive restoration, which has left it more appealing, lustrous and vivid than ever. This masterpiece offers a new take on 17th-century Dutch painting. The painting will be on display in the Philips Wing of the Rijksmuseum starting on 21 June 2011. Read more
Rijksmuseum acquires photos from Gerard Reve collection
Amsterdam, June 2011
Joop Schafthuizen donates nearly 500 portraits taken by Gerard Reve between 1947 and 2004 to the Rijksmuseum. Personally selected by Schafthuizen, this series offers a rare opportunity to follow more than 50 years in pictures of the life of Gerard Reve, who was not only highly significant and influential as a writer, but also highly photogenic and well aware of the image he conveyed in photographs. Schafthuizen is making the donation in memory of his life partner and – as he describes it – because he wants to honour the photographers who have portrayed Reve over all those years. Read more
Kiefer & Rembrandt. Rijksmuseum inspires Kiefer
Amsterdam, May 2011
One of Germany’s most well-known and influential artists, Anselm Kiefer, was invited by the Rijksmuseum to create a work of art inspired by The Night Watch. The result, the spectacular La berceuse (for Van Gogh), for which he was given complete free rein, will be on display in the Rijksmuseum’s Night Watch Gallery in the Philips Wing from 7 May. Read more
Dutch Flowers. 17th-century floral splendour at Rijksmuseum Schiphol
Amsterdam, March 2011
Following the Dutch Winters exhibition, the Rijksmuseum annex at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is going to present another characteristic aspect of the Netherlands, namely flowers, in the Dutch Flowers exhibition from 6 April to 5 September 2011. Nine exuberant ‘flower pieces’ from the museum’s collection that used to adorn the homes of the 17th-century economic elite are now in full bloom at the airport. Read more
