Rijksmuseum
Encyclopedia
The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam or simply Rijksmuseum (rɛi̯ks myˈzeʏm) (State Museum) is a Dutch
national museum
in Amsterdam
, located on the Museumplein
. The museum is dedicated to arts
, crafts, and history
. It has a large collection of painting
s from the Dutch Golden Age
and a substantial collection of Asian art
. It also displays the stern
of the HMS Royal Charles
which was captured in the Raid on the Medway
, and the Hartog plate
.
to exhibit the collections of the Dutch
stadtholder
s. It was inspired by French
example. By then it was known as the National Art Gallery (Dutch: Nationale Kunst-Gallerij). In 1808 the museum moved to Amsterdam
on the orders of king Louis Bonaparte
, brother of Napoleon Bonaparte
. The paintings owned by that city, such as The Night Watch
by Rembrandt, became part of the collection.
In 1863, there was a design contest
for a new building for the Rijksmuseum, but none of the submissions was considered to be of sufficient quality. Pierre Cuypers
also participated in the contest and his submission reached the second place. In 1876 a new contest was held and this time Pierre Cuypers won. The design was a combination of gothic
and renaissance
elements. The construction began on October 1, 1876. On both the inside and the outside, the building was richly decorated with references to Dutch art history. Another contest was held for these decorations. The winners were B. van Hove and J.F. Vermeylen for the sculpture
s, G. Sturm for the tile tableaus and painting
and W.F. Dixon for the stained glass
. The museum was opened at its new location on July 13, 1885.
The front of the museum is located at the Stadhouderskade, but on the other side it has a prominent position on the Museumplein
, nowadays among the Van Gogh Museum
, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, and the Concertgebouw
.
In 1890 a fragment building was added to the Rijksmuseum. This building was made out of fragments of demolished buildings that together give an overview of the Dutch history of architecture
. In 1906 the hall for the Night Watch
was rebuilt. In the interior more changes were made, between the 1920s and 1950s most multi-coloured wall decorations were painted over. In the 1960s exposition rooms and several floors were built into the two courtyards. The building had some minor renovations and restorations in 1984, 1995–1996 and 2000. From 2003 until 2013 the Rijksmuseum will be restored
and renovated
based on a design by Spanish architects Antonio Cruz and Antonio Ortiz. Many of the old interior decorations will be restored and the floors in the courtyards will be removed. During the restoration and renovation process only about four hundred of the one-million piece permanent collection are on display in an exhibition called The Masterpieces in the already renovated "fragment building," nowadays called the Philips
wing.
is part of the Rijksmuseum, and is the best and the largest public art history
research library
in The Netherlands.
, Johannes Vermeer
, Jan Steen
and Rembrandt and Rembrandt's pupils.
The Paintings in the collection by Rembrandt van Rijn:
:
:
.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
national museum
National museum
A national museum is a museum maintained by a nation.The following is a list of national museums:-Australia:*Australian National Aviation Museum*Australian National Maritime Museum*, Sydney*Australian War Memorial*Museum Victoria...
in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, located on the Museumplein
Museumplein
The Museumplein is a square in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The square is called "Museum Square" because four museums are located around the square: the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, and the Diamond Museum...
. The museum is dedicated to arts
ARts
aRts, which stands for analog Real time synthesizer, is an audio framework that is no longer under development. It is best known for previously being used in KDE to simulate an analog synthesizer....
, crafts, and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
. It has a large collection of painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s from the Dutch Golden Age
Dutch Golden Age
The Golden Age was a period in Dutch history, roughly spanning the 17th century, in which Dutch trade, science, military and art were among the most acclaimed in the world. The first half is characterised by the Eighty Years' War till 1648...
and a substantial collection of Asian art
Asian art
Asian art can refer to art amongst many cultures in Asia.-Various types of Asian art:*Afghan art*Azerbaijanian art*Balinese art*Bhutanese art*Buddhist art*Burmese contemporary art*Chinese art*Eastern art*Indian art*Iranian art*Islamic art...
. It also displays the stern
Stern
The stern is the rear or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite of the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Originally, the term only referred to the aft port section...
of the HMS Royal Charles
HMS Royal Charles (1655)
Royal Charles was an 80-gun first-rate three-decker ship of the line of the English Navy. She was originally called the Naseby, built by Peter Pett, and launched at Woolwich dockyard in 1655, for the navy of the Commonwealth of England, and named in honour of Oliver Cromwell's decisive 1645...
which was captured in the Raid on the Medway
Raid on the Medway
The Raid on the Medway, sometimes called the Battle of the Medway, Raid on Chatham or the Battle of Chatham, was a successful Dutch attack on the largest English naval ships, laid up in the dockyards of their main naval base Chatham, that took place in June 1667 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War...
, and the Hartog plate
Hartog Plate
Hartog Plate or Dirk Hartog's Plate is either of two plates, although primarily the first, which were left on Dirk Hartog Island during a period of European exploration of the western coast of Australia prior to European settlement there...
.
Foundation
The museum was founded in 1800 in The HagueThe Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
to exhibit the collections of the Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
stadtholder
Stadtholder
A Stadtholder A Stadtholder A Stadtholder (Dutch: stadhouder [], "steward" or "lieutenant", literally place holder, holding someones place, possibly a calque of German Statthalter, French lieutenant, or Middle Latin locum tenens...
s. It was inspired by French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
example. By then it was known as the National Art Gallery (Dutch: Nationale Kunst-Gallerij). In 1808 the museum moved to Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
on the orders of king Louis Bonaparte
Louis Bonaparte
Louis Napoléon Bonaparte, Prince Français, Comte de Saint-Leu , King of Holland , was the fifth surviving child and the fourth surviving son of Carlo Buonaparte and Letizia Ramolino...
, brother of Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
. The paintings owned by that city, such as The Night Watch
Night Watch (painting)
Night Watch or The Night Watch or The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq is the common name of one of the most famous works by Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn....
by Rembrandt, became part of the collection.
Cuypers' building
Architectural design competition
An architectural design competition is a special type of competition in which an organization or government body that plans to build a new building asks for architects to submit a proposed design for a building. The winning design is usually chosen by an independent panel of design professionals...
for a new building for the Rijksmuseum, but none of the submissions was considered to be of sufficient quality. Pierre Cuypers
Pierre Cuypers
Petrus Josephus Hubertus Cuypers was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station and the Rijksmuseum , both in Amsterdam. More representative for his oeuvre, however, are numerous churches, of which he designed more than 100...
also participated in the contest and his submission reached the second place. In 1876 a new contest was held and this time Pierre Cuypers won. The design was a combination of gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
and renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
elements. The construction began on October 1, 1876. On both the inside and the outside, the building was richly decorated with references to Dutch art history. Another contest was held for these decorations. The winners were B. van Hove and J.F. Vermeylen for the sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
s, G. Sturm for the tile tableaus and painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and W.F. Dixon for the stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
. The museum was opened at its new location on July 13, 1885.
The front of the museum is located at the Stadhouderskade, but on the other side it has a prominent position on the Museumplein
Museumplein
The Museumplein is a square in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The square is called "Museum Square" because four museums are located around the square: the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, and the Diamond Museum...
, nowadays among the Van Gogh Museum
Van Gogh Museum
The Van Gogh Museum is an art museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands, featuring the works of the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh and his contemporaries. It has the largest collection of Van Gogh's paintings and drawings in the world.-Background:...
, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, and the Concertgebouw
Concertgebouw
The Concertgebouw is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" literally translates into English as "concert building"...
.
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
. In 1906 the hall for the Night Watch
Night Watch (painting)
Night Watch or The Night Watch or The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq is the common name of one of the most famous works by Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn....
was rebuilt. In the interior more changes were made, between the 1920s and 1950s most multi-coloured wall decorations were painted over. In the 1960s exposition rooms and several floors were built into the two courtyards. The building had some minor renovations and restorations in 1984, 1995–1996 and 2000. From 2003 until 2013 the Rijksmuseum will be restored
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
and renovated
Renovation
Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...
based on a design by Spanish architects Antonio Cruz and Antonio Ortiz. Many of the old interior decorations will be restored and the floors in the courtyards will be removed. During the restoration and renovation process only about four hundred of the one-million piece permanent collection are on display in an exhibition called The Masterpieces in the already renovated "fragment building," nowadays called the Philips
Philips
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. , more commonly known as Philips, is a multinational Dutch electronics company....
wing.
Library
The Rijksmuseum Research LibraryRijksmuseum Research Library
The Rijksmuseum Research Library is the largest public art history research library in the Netherlands. The library is part of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam....
is part of the Rijksmuseum, and is the best and the largest public art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
research library
Research library
A research library is a library which contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects . A research library will generally include primary sources as well as secondary sources...
in The Netherlands.
Collection
The paintings collection includes works by artists Jacob van Ruysdael, Frans HalsFrans Hals
Frans Hals was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He is notable for his loose painterly brushwork, and helped introduce this lively style of painting into Dutch art. Hals was also instrumental in the evolution of 17th century group portraiture.-Biography:Hals was born in 1580 or 1581, in Antwerp...
, Johannes Vermeer
Johannes Vermeer
Johannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer was a Dutch painter who specialized in exquisite, domestic interior scenes of middle class life. Vermeer was a moderately successful provincial genre painter in his lifetime...
, Jan Steen
Jan Steen
Jan Havickszoon Steen was a Dutch genre painter of the 17th century . Psychological insight, sense of humour and abundance of colour are marks of his trade.-Life:...
and Rembrandt and Rembrandt's pupils.
Rembrandt
- Tobit and Anna with the Kid goat
- Musical Allegory
- Self Portrait 1629
- Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem
- An Old Woman Reading, probably the Prophetess Anna
- Bust of Young Woman (probably Saskia van Uylenburgh)
- Joseph Telling his Dreams
- Portrait of Johannes Wtenbogaert
- Portrait of van Haesje Jacobsdr van Cleyburgh
- Landscape with a Stone Bridge
- Dead Peacocks and a Girl
- Portrait of Maria Trip
- The Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq and Lieutenant Willem van RuytenburchNight Watch (painting)Night Watch or The Night Watch or The Shooting Company of Frans Banning Cocq is the common name of one of the most famous works by Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn....
- Portrait of Ephraim Bueno
- The Denial of Peter
- Titus as a Monk
- Self-portrait as the Apostle Paul
- Syndics of the Drapers' Guild
- The Jewish BrideThe Jewish BrideThe Jewish Bride is a painting by Rembrandt, executed around 1667.The painting gained its current name in the early 19th century, when an Amsterdam art collector identified the subject as that of a Jewish father bestowing a necklace upon his daughter on her wedding day. This interpretation is no...
Johannes Vermeer
Paintings in the collection by Johannes VermeerJohannes Vermeer
Johannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer was a Dutch painter who specialized in exquisite, domestic interior scenes of middle class life. Vermeer was a moderately successful provincial genre painter in his lifetime...
:
- The MilkmaidThe Milkmaid (Vermeer)The Milkmaid , sometimes called The Kitchen Maid, is an oil-on-canvas painting of a "milkmaid", in fact a domestic kitchen maid, by the Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer...
- The Love Letter
- Woman in Blue Reading a LetterWoman in Blue Reading a LetterWoman in Blue Reading a Letter is a painting by the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. Part of the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam since 1885, it was the first Vermeer acquired by the museum.-Composition:...
- The Little StreetThe Little Street (Vermeer)The Little Street is a painting by the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer, executed c. 1657-1658. It is housed in the Rijksmuseum of Amsterdam, and signed left below the window with the writing "I V MEER".-See also:...
Frans Hals
Paintings in the collection by Frans HalsFrans Hals
Frans Hals was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He is notable for his loose painterly brushwork, and helped introduce this lively style of painting into Dutch art. Hals was also instrumental in the evolution of 17th century group portraiture.-Biography:Hals was born in 1580 or 1581, in Antwerp...
:
- Portrait of a Young Couple
- The Company of Reynier Real
- The Jolly Drinker
- Portrait of Lucas De Clercq
- Portrait of Nicolaes Hasselaer
- Portrait of a Man
Jan Steen
Paintings in the collection by Jan SteenJan Steen
Jan Havickszoon Steen was a Dutch genre painter of the 17th century . Psychological insight, sense of humour and abundance of colour are marks of his trade.-Life:...
.
- The Feast of Saint NicholasThe Feast of Saint NicholasThe Feast of Saint Nicholas , is a painting by Dutch master Jan Steen, which can now be found in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. It measures 82 x 70.5 cm...
- The Drunken Pair
- The Toilet
- Adolf en Catharina Croeser
- Arent Oostwaard and his wife
External links
- Rijksmuseum Amsterdam – in six languages
- Paintings at the Rijksmuseum (in English)