A mythical aura often surrounds a museum's depot. How many works of unparalleled value does a top collection like the Mauritshuis let gather dust on its shelves? And more importantly, why? And as a museum, wouldn't it be better to sell them? In the exhibition Highs and lows from the depot the Mauritshuis answers such questions. At the same time, new questions arise, which are at least as interesting.
Relatively, the Mauritshuis keeps few pieces in storage: some 300 works, 35% of its total holdings. Most hang on display: in the museum itself, in Gallery William V across the Hofvijver or on loan at other museums. It is one of the reasons the museum does not sell its depot pieces just like that: the quantity is manageable, also financially. Moreover, most of the collection has been together for a long time and some depot pieces are used as reserves to temporarily replace loans.
25 officers
From the 300 paintings in the depot, curator Edwin Buijsen selected 52 for the exhibition, but fair is fair: almost half of them make up one whole. Those are 25 portraits of the officers of Maurice - not the namesake of the Mauritshuis, but the son of William of Orange. They hung for a long time at Honselaarsdijk Palace and, via various detours, ended up in the collection in The Hague. After a restoration, they can be seen together again for the first time in 200 years. The portraits are by Hague painter Jan van Ravesteyn, except for one. That one is by Fransise de Goltz and therefore promptly looks the other way. Why? We don't know, nor why there are quite large stylistic differences between the portraits. A group of scholars will soon come to discuss this.
The exhibition is arranged according to why paintings do not hang in the gallery. Too many of the same painter can therefore be a problem, as with the Van Ravesteyns. Of the eight Jan van Goyens owned by the museum, five now hang in the exhibition, but normally only one is on display. It is up to the visitor to judge whether that is really the best of the bunch.
Another reason to stay in the depot: poor condition. This applies, for instance, to Karel Slabbaert's fine male head, badly damaged by a long stay in the Dutch East Indies. Time and money are lacking to restore all paintings where something is wrong, and then Slabbaert is just not good or famous enough.
No Raphael, still interesting
Some pieces are simply "not good enough". King William I thought to buy a Raphael in 1821, but it was this early-16e-century semi-nude woman in golden oval at all. Now, after nearly two centuries in the depot, it appears to be one of the earliest known figure pieces on gold-leather wallpaper. Experts are in all states of delight. Probably the lady was part of a mural. This oval was cut out and varnished many times. Later, it was covered with gold leaf. X-ray examination now revealed the original pattern. Thus, the alleged mispurchase turns out to be interesting after all.
Oranjezaal Huis ten Bosch
There are also pieces that do not fit into the permanent display because of their era (Andy Warhol: too late) or their size (too big for a city palace). The latter category includes a huge trompe l'oeuil by Salomon de Bray, Putti bear a cartouche with stadholder Frederik Hendrik's date of birth. Once part of the Orange Hall of Huis ten Bosch. The saw went into it when a door was to be built in that place. In 1875, it was found in the attic of the Mauritshuis. Now it marks the opening in the wall that runs right through the exhibition. A wall designed like the shelf in a depot. The wall makes it possible to show works from the front and back. So we see with how much love and patience the completely warped wooden panel The baptism of the chamberlain of Hendrik van Balen and Jan Breughel II is framed on the back with ingenious splints without further damage. Even of a fine triptych with the life of King Solomon on it, both sides can be seen, which would not be possible in normal museum rooms.
Audience favourite
The audience also has something to choose for themselves. One seat has been kept empty. On the website and on site you will find six candidates for that place. The first favourite will hang in the exhibition in mid-February. For the next round, the three most chosen works will go through and three more will be added, and this will repeat itself. A total of 12 works thus stand a chance, one of three periods to hang in the exhibition. The piece with the most votes even gets a permanent place in the gallery after the exhibition.
Showing even the weaker works from the depot and recruiting an audience favourite shows guts. Not only at the Mauritshuis, but certainly also at its new sponsor Nationale Nederlanden, which recently signed on to host one exhibition a year.
But what Highs and lows from the depot especially interesting is the glimpse into the ins and outs of a museum. Employees from all ranks were therefore involved. Besides Buijsen and director Emilie Gordenker, researchers, conservators, project managers, (assistant) curators and interns collaborated on the exhibition. Together, they show the choices a museum has to make. Which works do you choose to present? If you lend something out, how easily do you find a replacement in your depot that fits that room well? When do you decide to restore or examine something and when not? What does your acquisition and disposal policy look like? While looking, such questions come to mind. And for a moment you find yourself in the curator's shoes.
- Highs and lows from the depot, Mauritshuis, The Hague, 4 February to 8 May
- Vote for your favourite via www.mauritshuis.nl/publiekslieveling
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