Major gift from Paul Andriesse

Works on loan from the Andriesse collection and pieces drawn from the museum’s existing holdings will be exhibited alongside selections from the gift. Organized by Stedelijk Museum Curator Bart Rutten in dialogue with Andriesse, the exhibition emphasizes associative insights into the common ground between these collections. It also highlights Andriesse’s distinguished and close engagement with contemporary art and artists.

Stedelijk Museum Director Ann Goldstein said, “We are deeply honored by Paul Andriesse’s generous and meaningful expression of his commitment to the museum. His thoughtful gift is a testament to his longstanding and passionate engagement with art and artists, and to his profound and personal relationship with this institution. His magnificent gesture underscores how private collectors can make a significant and lasting contribution to museums. We are so fortunate to be the beneficiaries of such generosity from Andriesse and other donors over the years.”

Andriesse said, “I think it’s vital to provide the Stedelijk with this kind of support, and I am extremely fortunate to be in a position to do so. When Ann Goldstein was appointed, I soon realized the museum would become an even warmer, more inviting place for artists and collectors. I hope that, with this gift, I can share my passion for contemporary art with visitors to the museum.”

In making this gift, Andriesse specifically selected works that would complement both the art and design collections of the Stedelijk. Works on paper by Dumas and Daniëls, for example, further enrich the museum’s holdings of these major Dutch artists. This is particularly evident in the Daniëls drawing Een zaal boven de Pacific, a key work in which visual elements typical of the artist (a bow tie, exhibition space) jubilantly combine in a self-portrait. A chair by French designer Jean Prouvé is the first work by Prouvé to enter the museum’s collection, and it significantly augments the Stedelijk’s renowned design collection.

Three photographs by Thomas Struth enhance the Stedelijk’s collection of the German artist’s work and complement the holdings of photographic work by Struth and his contemporaries, including Rineke Dijkstra, Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, and Cindy Sherman. Other photographic works in the gift include Tableau No. 35 by French artist Jean-Marc Bustamante, Meriden by American artist James Welling, and Tropical House (prototype), Sun Shutters by Christopher Williams, also from the United States. All of these artists share a conceptual approach to photography that has played a significant role in transforming the position of the medium within the visual arts in recent decades.

On the occasion of the exhibition, the Stedelijk Museum will publish a set of postcards featuring selections from gift.

About Paul Andriesse

Paul Andriesse (b. Bussum, 1955) opened Gallery Paul Andriesse in Amsterdam in 1984. Andriesse began acquiring works for his private collection while still a student. Andriesse is known for forging relationships with artists at the outset of their careers. Andriesse started working with René Daniëls in 1979, and he first exhibited the work of Rineke Dijkstra in 1993. He represents leading international talents such as Marlene Dumas, Thomas Struth, and Lidwien van de Ven.