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fig. 1
Director John Leighton (left) with architects Kisho Kurokawa and Martien van Goor (right), 1998
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Review
January 1997 - July 1998
Acquisitions
Alongside its core holdings of Van Gogh and his contemporaries, on permanent loan from the Vincent van Gogh Foundation, the Van Gogh Museum strives to present a broad overview of international art from the period circa 1840-1920. In recent years there have been numerous important purchases and, for example, with the addition of sculpture in the displays, new parameters have been established for the collection. There are still many gaps, however, and while the collection has impressive depth in some areas of the 19th century, such as realism and symbolism, the representation of impressionism and certain aspects of post-impressionism remains unsatisfactory.
It is pleasing to report, therefore, that with the purchase of an oil study by Georges Seurat, one very conspicuous gap in the collection has been filled. On more than one occasion Van Gogh expressed a wish to own a study by Seurat and he even thought of exchanging one of his own works with this artist. Unfortunately this plan was never realised, although Theo van Gogh did manage to purchase a very fine drawing, which remains in the collection. The new oil study (purchased with the support of the Vincent van Gogh Foundation and the Vereniging Rembrandt) is a splendid example of Seurat's early style, from the period when he was working on his famous masterpiece, A Sunday afternoon on the Island of the Grande Jatte (Art Institute of Chicago). The painting offers a fascinating comparison with Vincent's works from his Paris period and, when shown next to the latter's views of similar motifs, it underlines the importance of Seurat for the development of Van Gogh's art.
Other notable purchases include the fine still life by Théodule Ribot, discussed in the present volume in an article by Gabriel Weisberg (pp. 76-87), while the collection of drawings has been further enhanced with works by Lhermitte, Dupré and Lebourg. An interesting portrayal of Van Gogh by the Scot A.S. Hartrick is a welcome addition to our collection of images of the artist. Hartrick was a fellow student of Van Gogh in the studio of Fernand Cormon in Paris and later published his reminiscences of this period. A spirited oil study by Gerard Bilders has been acquired for the Museum Mesdag. Thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor, an important work by Mancini was added to the group of works by this artist in The Hague.
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The Bonger collection
In December 1996 it was announced that the Dutch State had purchased the former collection of André Bonger and that these works would be placed in the Van Gogh Museum. The collection consists of over 100 paintings, drawings and prints, mainly by Odilon Redon and Emile Bernard. André Bonger (known as Andries to his friends) lived from 1879 in Paris, where he became friends with Theo van Gogh - Theo would later marry Bonger's sister, Johanna. Through Theo, Bonger came into contact with the Parisian avant-garde and he eventually became an avid collector, purchasing, for example, important works by Van Gogh and Cézanne. His greatest enthusiasm, however, was reserved for his friends Redon and Bernard, and it is particularly fortunate that so many of these works remained in the hands of Bonger's descendants. The collection that will come to the Van Gogh Museum contains over 50 works by Redon, adding in effect a second core to the museum's holdings. The Bonger collection will be transferred to the Van Gogh Museum in several stages over the following years and plans are already underway for an exhibition of these works, probably in the year 2003.
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Loans
Loans play an important part in bolstering the displays of the Van Gogh Museum and we have received vital support from other institutions and from private collectors in our efforts to provide a rich context for Van Gogh's work. The long-term loan of a group of works from the neighbouring Stedelijk Museum has greatly enhanced the presentations with, for example, sculptures by Degas, Renoir and Rodin. Also included in this loan is Van Gogh's La berceuse (presented to the Stedelijk by V.W. van Gogh in 1945), which
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fig. 2
Georges Seurat, The Seine at Courbevoie, Amsterdam, Van Gogh Museum
is now reunited with the Sunflowers, thus evoking Vincent's own ideas on displaying these subjects side by side.
It is clear that the museum will continue to depend on the generosity of lenders, both public and private, if it is to fulfil its ambitions to be a museum of the 19th century. Further cooperation with the Rijksmuseum and the Stedelijk is essential, and discussions with these museums are continuing in an effort to develop a more coherent policy for the presentation of both Dutch and international art of the 19th and 20th centuries in the institutions on the Museumplein.
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Conservation
The programme of conservation for the collection of Van Gogh drawings and paintings has made good progress. Parallel to the production of scholarly catalogues, all the Van Gogh drawings in the collection are being conserved and, where necessary, restored. A number of drawings by other artists are also being restored in preparation for the exhibition on Theo van Gogh in 1999.
Conservation work was also carried out on several paintings in the collection, among which the most spectacular gain was the restoration by Cornelia Peres of the Almond blossoms. The sensitive nuances of blue, light pink and white in this work had been obscured by a layer of discoloured varnish. The removal of this modern, synthetic varnish turned out to be a painstaking task, but the freshness and vigour of this painting are now fully apparent. Work was also carried out on other 19th-century pictures and René Boitelle's skilful restoration of two extremely fragile works by Paul Gauguin (On the shore of the lake in Martinique and Among the mangoes in Martinique) deserves special mention.
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Academic research
In 1995 the museum embarked on a project to catalogue in full the entire collection of works by Van Gogh. The second of what will be a series of three volumes on the drawings was published in the summer of 1997. Compiled by Sjraar van Heugten with the support of other members of the curatorial department, this volume covers the Nuenen period, from 1883 to 1885. Each drawing is illustrated in colour and described in detailed catalogue entries. An introductory essay sets the context for the development of Van Gogh's approach to drawing during his stay
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in Brabant. Work is underway on the first of three volumes on the paintings collection. Written by Louis van Tilborgh and Marije Vellekoop with assistance from Cornelia Peres, this volume is scheduled to appear in the spring of 1999.
Alongside their work on the collection catalogues, the curators have been involved with exhibition work both for the museum itself and for other institutions. The totality of Van Gogh's engravings, first published and shown in the Van Gogh Museum in 1995, were represented in a special exhibition at the Netherlands Institute in Florence, with a catalogue by Sjraar van Heugten and Fieke Pabst. Chief Curator Louis van Tilborgh is the principal author and curator for the forthcoming Van Gogh and Millet exhibition at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
The Van Gogh Letters Project began in 1994. In collaboration with the Constantijn Huygens Institute, this will eventually result in a scholarly, annotated edition of all the letters to and from Van Gogh. Work on the transcriptions of all the letters from the Dutch period is now complete and a start has been made on the annotations. While the project is guided by specialists from the two collaborating institutions, there is also a wider Editorial Board, formed by internal and external experts, which met for the second time in June 1998. Meanwhile, members of the Letters Project are making an invaluable contribution to scholarly work throughout the museum, and they have presented their findings to outside scholars in lectures and in articles such as the contribution in the present volume by Leo Jansen.
The museum's academic staff handles a huge volume of enquiries about all aspects of Van Gogh's life and work and deals with numerous requests for expertises. The interest in issues of authenticity surrounding Van Gogh's oeuvre has intensified in recent months, and there has been a steady flow of stories and so-called revelations in the international media. Much of this coverage has been sensationalist, and the attention of the world press has at times served only to distract the staff from their research. However, the museum is keen to encourage constructive and serious debate on these issues. In May 1998 the Van Gogh Museum joined forces with the National Gallery in London to organise a symposium that brought together experts from across the world to discuss various aspects of Van Gogh studies, including authenticity. Held at the National Gallery, this symposium helped to present the public and the press with a clearer picture of some of the most important research projects that are now underway at the Van Gogh Museum and elsewhere. The museum was represented by members of the Letters Project and by curators Louis van Tilborgh and Sjraar van Heugten.
In an introductory talk at the London symposium, the author set out the broad lines of the research programme at the Van Gogh Museum. In the process of cataloguing its own collection and, at the same time, publishing aspects of the Van Gogh archives, the museum is building up a reservoir of experience and information that will be invaluable for the next stage: the revision of the complete catalogue of Van Gogh's oeuvre. It is clear that a vast amount of research, including technical study and archival work, still needs to be done before it makes sense to even begin to tackle such a project. Nevertheless, with its own programmes and working in collaboration with outside scholars, the Van Gogh Museum continues to play a pivotal role in presenting a more distinct picture of Van Gogh and his working methods.
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Other activities
Since March 1996 Aukje Vergeest has been engaged in a project to make an inventory and summary catalogue of all the French 19th-century paintings in Dutch public collections. This work has been supported with a subsidy from the Mondriaan Stichting and is supervised by former director Ronald de Leeuw and Louis van Tilborgh. Much of the research is now complete and work on the resulting publication is due to begin next year.
The Museum participates in the Dutch Post graduate School for Art History, of which it is one of the founding members.
In November 1997 the Van Gogh Museum organised a major international symposium (held at the Rijksmuseum) in honour of former director Ronald de Leeuw. Entitled ‘Presenting the Art of the 19th Century,’ the speakers included Gary Tinterow (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York), Neil MacGregor (National Gallery, London), Henri Loyrette (Musée d'Orsay, Paris), John House (Courtauld Institute of Art, London) and (the keynote speaker) Ronald de Leeuw. The first day was devoted to the international scene and the second to the presentation of 19th-century art in Dutch museums. The speakers on the second day included Andreas Blühm, Head of Exhibitions at the Van Gogh Museum, who provided an excellent survey of the different ways in which works by Van Gogh have been presented in exhibitions and displays since the end of the last century.
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Library and archive
Since November 1996 the library and archive have been housed in a villa adjoining the museum. This facility is open to the public (on application) on weekdays. In the archive, Fieke Pabst and Monique Hageman provide invaluable support for the museum's scholarly activities and answer numerous enquires from outside researchers. Our Librarian, Anita Vriend has supervised the new installation of the library and has continued to strengthen the holdings of this important resource for Van Gogh studies.
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Museum Mesdag
In October 1996 the Museum Mesdag (managed by the Van Gogh Museum) reopened to the public after a major refurbishment. The initial response was enthusiastic. The careful reconstruction of the original character of the interiors was well received, and the local public enjoyed rediscovering this surprising collection tucked away in a quiet corner of The Hague. Although its superb collections of paintings by Barbizon School artists and the Hague School are known to specialists, the Museum Mesdag has yet to receive the attention that it deserves from the general public. Programmes of visits for schools, as well as public talks, have been organised, often in collaboration with other museums in the so-called Mesdagkwartier, and efforts will continue to raise the national and international profile of this collection.
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Exhibitions
While the majority of our foreign visitors come to see the holdings of Van Gogh, it is our programme of changing exhibitions that brings the Dutch public to the museum. Exhibitions now play an essential role in our efforts to attract the local and national public, and there is ample evidence that this policy has been a success. Our surveys show, for example, that the exhibition devoted to Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema attracted a high proportion of Dutch visitors, and while this might be expected of an artist popular in his native land, the same was also true of the exhibition Vienna 1900.
The Alma-Tadema exhibition (29 November 1996-2 March 1997), organised in collaboration with the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, offered a chance to reappraise the work of an artist who was highly celebrated during his own lifetime, but whose work quickly fell out of fashion in this century. The exhibition attracted a record number of visitors for the slow season and the catalogue, with contributions
fig. 3
Auguste Préault, Van Gogh Museum, 1998
from a range of specialists in Victorian art (edited by Edwin Becker), became a bestseller in the shop. Numerous activities were developed around the theme of the exhibition, including a special soirée with appropriate music and readings, organised in conjunction with the British Council and the Anglo-Dutch Piano Platform.
Vienna 1900: portraits and interiors (21 March-15 June 1997) was the first exhibition in the Netherlands of Austrian art from the turn of the century. Some of the finest examples of paintings, graphic art, furniture and the decorative arts from this period were brought together in a show that was produced in collaboration with the major lender, the Österreichische Galerie in Vienna. This exhibition also travelled to the Von der Heydt-Museum in Wuppertal.
The summer exhibition of 1997 was devoted to Van Gogh's drawings from Brabant, to coincide with the publication of Sjraar van Heugten's catalogue of this part of the collection (see above). This was followed by Auguste Préault, 1809-1879: romanticism in bronze (17 October 1997-11 January 1998), organised in collaboration with the Musée d'Orsay, Paris and the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Blois. As part of our series on lesser known 19th-century artists this show highlighted the career of one of the most important sculptors of the romantic era. It included masterpieces such as Le silence (1842) and Ophélia (c. 1870), as well as a number of portrait medallions of fellow artists, actors and poets.
The Van Gogh Museum houses more than 400 Japanese prints from the collection assembled by Vincent and Theo van Gogh. Some 46 of these prints are by Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861), an artist best known for his depictions of Japanese heroes and battles. From 30 January-
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5 April 1998 the Museum showed a major retrospective of Kuniyoshi's work, with high-quality prints from collections across the world. Besides Kuniyoshi's prints and illustrated books, the show contained a selection of the artist's drawings and paintings. The exhibition was organised with the Society for Japanese Arts, who also published the catalogue by Robert Schaap. Following its showing in Amsterdam this exhibition was presented at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
With great reluctance and sadness the museum was forced to abandon its plans to host a major exhibition devoted to British symbolism. The show, entitled The age of Rosetti, Burne-Jones and Watts: symbolism in Britain 1860-1910, opened at the Tate Gallery in London before moving to the Haus der Kunst in Munich. The following venue should have been Amsterdam, but this was cancelled when it became apparent that the transport of the art works would coincide with major construction work in the Rietveld building. The staff had already devoted much time and energy to this project, and it is to be hoped that an exhibition on this subject may take place at the Van Gogh Museum in the future.
The honour of being the last exhibition in the Rietveld building before the closure thus fell to a more modest yet still highly attractive undertaking. From 8 April there was a display of 19th-century photographs from the Prentenkabinet of Leiden University. With some 80,000 items, this print room houses one of the most important photographic collections in the Netherlands, yet until recently it faced an uncertain future. The selection, made by students from university working under the supervision of Ingeborg Leijerzapf, included stunning works by well-known practitioners such as Julia Margaret Cameron and George Hendrik Breitner, as well as a number of intriguing images by some of the now-anonymous pioneers of the art of photography.
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Public service and education
In addition to the lectures, tours and other activities which it offers in connection with special exhibitions, the museum also offers interpretative material on the permanent collection. In 1997 explanatory texts were added to the labels for all the paintings on display (except those by Van Gogh). Explanatory material on the Van Gogh collection is provided by, for example, the popular audio-tour under the auspices of Accoustiguide. After the closure of the auditorium in the autumn of 1997 for building work, lunch-time
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John Leighton and First Lady Hilary Clinton in front of Van Gogh's Bedroom in Arles, 27 May 1997 (official White House photograph)
lectures continued to be held in front of the pictures, attracting a loyal audience every Wednesday.
The preparations for the closure of the museum and the steadily encroaching building works has meant that many activities have had to be scaled down in 1998. However, at the time of writing, ambitious plans are being laid for a new approach to education in the Van Gogh Museum when it reopens in May 1999.
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Friends of the Van Gogh Museum
The Museum enjoys the support of a small but active Friends Organisation. Among their many initiatives was the introduction of an information desk in the museum, manned by a group of volunteers who were willing to give up their free time to offer an important service to our visitors. The desk has become so successful that it has been decided to make it an integral part of the museum's operations. As a result, following the reopening next year, the desk will be run by paid employees. We pay tribute here to the work of our loyal volunteers and record our gratitude for their important contribution in establishing this service.
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Attendance figures
In 1997 the Van Gogh Museum was attended by 1,018,684 visitors. The attendance figure for the Museum Mesdag in 1997 was 16,454.
John Leighton
Director
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