Museum van Bommel van Dam exhibits Evert Thielen – De Luiken Open
Autumn 2024
Expected: Evert Thielen
Museum van Bommel van Dam is going all out in autumn 2024 with the museum-filling exhibition of the Venlo-born realistic painter Evert Thielen, (inter)nationally known for his polyptychs of monumental dimensions. Besides exhibiting new and previously unexhibited pieces, the Venlo art museum has chosen a thematic approach which stimulates visitors to look with fresh eyes. The in-depth exhibition is being realised with support from the municipality of Venlo and will be shown from 15 September 2024 to 23 February 2025.
15 September 2024 up to and including 23 February 2025
Tijdens Museum van Bommel van Dam toont Evert Thielen – De Luiken Open heb je een ticket met tijdslot nodig om de tentoonstelling te bezoeken. Met tijdsloten kunnen we bezoekers over de dag verdelen en ervoor zorgen dat het niet te druk wordt. Zodra de ticketverkoop van start gaat, koop je hier je tickets.
Thematic approach
The oeuvre of Evert Thielen (Venlo, 1954) comprises realistic pieces with a symbolic load, inspired by the art of painting from previous centuries, and it has an exceptional appeal to a large group of people. In 2019, museum van Bommel van Dam, undergoing renovations at the time, organised a small exhibition of Thielen’s work on paper. Five years later, the museum is going all out with a large number of his characteristic polyptychs and paintings in the fully renovated building on Keulsepoort in Venlo. The choice of a thematic approach makes the exhibition interesting to those who enjoy Thielen's work as well as those who do not yet know him.
Cultural city programme
Parallel with the exhibition, and in collaboration with the business community and social partners, the municipality of Venlo is organising a city-wide event with a range of activities related to art and culture in the autumn of 2024. This event will put both the art and culture in Venlo on the map. Evert Thielen's double exhibition in 2019 in the Limburgs Museum and museum van Bommel van Dam led to great dynamics and positive economic effects in Venlo. The city programme, combined with the anticipated exhibition, must ensure the necessary economic and cultural effects throughout the municipality.
De Luiken Open (Opening the Shutters)
It is not uncommon for Evert Thielen to work on large-scale pieces. His renowned polyptychs are paintings of a monumental size and constructed of several panels, painted on both sides. With the title of the exhibition, Museum van Bommel van Dam toont Evert Thielen – De Luiken Open, (Museum van Bommel van Dam exhibits Evert Thielen – Opening the Shutters) museum van Bommel van Dam refers on the one hand, to these polyptychs, which will be given a prominent place in this exhibition. One of these polyptychs that the artist has been working on since the double exhibition in 2019 is nearing completion and will be shown for the first time in this form. On the other hand, the museum aims to unwrap the work on a deeper level. How can Thielen's paintings be dissected and interpreted? By taking a thematic approach this time, the art museum wants to try and decipher and encourage the deep connection people feel with the work. Indeed, his art has an exceptionally great appeal to many.
Closer to the work and the artist
Previous exhibitions of Evert Thielen in the Cobra Museum (2002), Het Noordbrabants Museum (2005), Museum De Fundatie (2011) and the double exhibition in the Limburgs Museum and museum van Bommel van Dam (2019) attracted an overwhelming number of enthusiasts. Is that rapture induced by the artist’s working methods that can be traced back to the techniques used by the old masters? Does it have to do with the hyper-realistic style in which he works? Or are the often remarkably simple and personal and, at other times, complex portrayals also a window into our time? Through the exhibition as well as the extensive educational and public programme, museum van Bommel van Dam endeavours to examine these layers as well as bring the visitor closer to the work and the artist.
