THE ARTS SOCIETY THE HAGUE

Most kindly invites you to join us for a Special Event

On Sunday 8th December 2024 at 11.30 hrs. to

'Maarten van Heemskerck' 

at the Frans Hals Museum, Harlem
 

*  I.e. that's meetup at the museum by 11.15.

For the first time in 450 years a large retrospective of the oeuvre of the artist will be on display in not one but three museums; each museum will showcase a distinct period from this influential and successful 16th century artist.

The FRANS HALS MUSEUM exhibits 'Bold Innovator' consisting of van Heemskerck's earliest known work-from expressive religious paintings to portraits of the emerging bourgeoisie combined with works of his contemporaries like Jan van Scorel and Jan Gossart.  The artist was bold in terms of his innovative, realistic style of painting.

The absolute high light and masterpiece in this exhibition is 'Saint Luke painting the Madonna' (1532) from its own collection - it has been restored and is now back in the original set up of two paintings instead of one.  Another highlight is 'Portrait of a Woman Spinning' (1528) as depicted here, on loan from Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, this work has never been exhibited in the Netherlands.

The STEDELIJK MUSEUM ALKMAAR exhibits 'To Rome', an account of van Heemskerck's trip to Italy and show how it resulted in work that was audacious – and at that time surprising and innovative.  In Rome the artist encountered the works of Michelangelo, Raphael, and their contemporaries.  This made a huge impression on van Heemskerck and his style became more expressive and dynamic.

The TEYLERS MUSEUM exhibits 'Pioneer on Paper', it presents the artist as an innovator in Dutch printing.  With over 60 prints the museum showcases van Heemskerck as a successful businessman, his prints were sold far and wide and became a source of inspiration for Rembrandt and other artists.

This large retrospective would not have been possible without the support and generous loans from museums and private collections and sponsors from all over the world.

Professor Emeritus Ilja Veldman, who is the guest curator at all three museums and the author of the catalogue, has performed extensive research, which gave some important new insights including changes to attributions and added identifications of portrait subjects.
 
Why not join us on the first stage of exploring the masterpieces of this innovative, expressive, and theatrical artist – all the exhibits are of the highest quality and you´ll be able to see newly attributed works – some from private collections which will normally not be accessible to the public.

We have 15 places available.