Stedelijk Museum receives gift of the video work Turning Point
News — Jan 11, 2018
Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam has enjoyed a long relationship with media pioneers Hooykaas/Stansfield, supporting the duo early in their career. The generous donation of the Hooykaas/Stansfield artwork Turning Point (1995), gifted by Madelon Hooykaas, will enhance the Stedelijk’s holdings of their work.
Within Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam’s renowned time-based media collection are 15 seminal works by the artist duo Hooykaas/Stansfield, which comprises Dutch filmmaker Madelon Hooykaas (1942, Maartensdijk) and the Scottish artist Elsa Stansfield (Glasgow 1945-2004) . Madelon Hooykaas gifted the video installation Turning Point (1995) to the Stedelijk Museum to mark the departure of Bart Rutten, former Head of Collections, in 2017. The gift is a token of appreciation for Rutten’s contribution to the field of video art, and his dedicated stewardship of Hooykaas/Stansfield’s work.
Nature and technology
Hooykaas/Stansfield are regarded as pioneers in the world of time-based media. Their work has a poetic quality. Turning Point explores two important themes: nature and technology. This installation is the result of a period spent travelling and collating documentation of the places visited by the artists. Like much of their work, the video features an interactive element: visitors can pause the images by placing their hand on the central panel.
Video staircase
In 1981, the museum presented the Hooykaas/Stansfield installation Two Sides of a Story: the first work to be screened in the Stedelijk’s famous “video staircase.” The Stedelijk purchased work by Hooykaas/Stansfield early in their career; the first piece to join the collection was Two Sides of a Story. The artist duo also participated in important exhibitions such as The Luminous Image (1984) and Arts for Television (1987).
About Hooykaas/Stansfield
Madelon Hooykaas and Elsa Stansfield began their artistic collaboration in 1972. Their first film, Een van die dagen (One of those days), was broadcast in 1973 on Dutch TV, and was also screened at festivals in London, Toronto and New York. Before long, the duo focused entirely on video installations. Together, they produced over 90 videos, installations and images. Their work is exhibited in various leading museums including Tate Gallery in Liverpool, MoMA in New York and prestigious international exhibits such as Documenta. Within the Netherlands, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam’s 15 works by the duo are complemented by the collection of LIMA, the Dutch platform for media art, which holds over 40 video works by Hooykaas/Stansfield.