“The Van Gogh Museum is famous beyond its name, beyond its size, beyond its everything,” says its director, Axel Rüger.
The museum’s profile has been raised even fur- ther this year with the 125th anniversary of the Dutch artist’s death, which the museum has marked with the opening of a major new entrance hall.
The museum tells the story of the post-impressionist artist, Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) through its huge collection of his work – 200 paintings, 500 drawings and almost his entire written correspondence.
We’re all familiar with the life of Van Gogh, but it is the same stories that tend to prevail: an under-appreciated artist who went mad, cut off his ear and killed himself.
“Myth-busting is our daily bread,” says Rüger. “We have to combat the myths about Van Gogh, but we also have to stand up to them.”
Rüger became the director of the Van Gogh Museum nine years ago, moving from the National Gallery, London, where he was the curator of Dutch paintings 1600-1800.
He feels exceptionally lucky to have been given that chance at such a young age, and working under then-director Neil MacGregor gave him a good idea of the path he was on.
Does he have to be an expert in Van Gogh to run the Van Gogh Museum?
Rüger says not, though he clearly knows more than most about the Dutch artist. Van Gogh, a lonely and poverty-stricken man, only sold one painting in his lifetime, and was entirely monetarily supported by his brother Theo.
The hundreds of letters Vincent wrote, that the museum holds many of, tell of the artist’s troubled life in phenomenal detail.
“But the first question everyone asks is: ‘So what about the ear?’” Rüger says. “The famous issues feed the popular imagination so much we thought we might as well tell the whole story of the ear in explicit terms.
So we devote a whole wall of the gallery to Van Gogh’s mental illness and the loss of his ear. We also devote part of the space to his death, with a picture of the grave, because that’s also in people’s minds, and we must address that rather than try to redress it.”
Attracting hoards of visitors each year by the fame of its subject alone, the museum doesn’t have to market itself much.
“It is disproportionate how famous the artist is, how famous this museum is as a result and what that generates in terms of interest, in terms of attention and in terms of opportunities to work with other parties,” Rüger says.
“All the big kids want to play with us – they want Van Gogh loans, they want Van Gogh exhi- bitions. That means we can collaborate with the really big players, even though we’re quite a small museum in comparison.”
Rüger has collaborated with the Munch Museet in Oslo, Norway, for the first show in the reopened exhibition wing of the Van Gogh Museum. The exhibition Munch: Van Gogh puts Norwegian artist Edvard Munche many themes and approaches the two artists have in common, though they never met in life.
“Van Gogh was a great source of inspiration for Munch, and the 125th anniversary of Vin- cent’s death gave us the perfect moment to celebrate him with this show,” Rüger says.
The Van Gogh Museum first opened in 1973, with a building designed by architect, and founder of the De Stijl movement, Gerrit Rietveld, who died nine years before the completion of the project. The exhibition wing was built in 1999 by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa, who died in 2007.
More than 30 years after the museum first opened it was very much in need of renova- tion. This began in 2012 with the entire refurbishment of the Rietveld-designed part, when the collection was moved offsite to the Hermitage Amsterdam. Then in 2014, the Kurokawa wing closed for the entrance hall to be added.
This new glass structure was developed by local architecture firm Hans van Heeswijk Architecte, with advice from Kurokawa’s studio.
Over a million visitors flock to see Van Gogh’s work each year, so the new entrance gives the museum more space to accommo- date them.
The old part of the museum that stayed open during the renovation was built for visitor numbers of 300,000 a year, so the added space will alleviate pressure by add- ing more room and better facilities.
The new entrance will also “improve the flow of visitors by creating a better connec- tion between the Kurokawa exhibition wing and the Rietveld building,” Rüger says.
Facing on to Amsterdam’s Museumplein, the entrance also means visitors can get to the Stedelijk art gallery and recently reno- vated Rijksmuseum with greater ease.
The Van Gogh Museum aims to make the life and work of Vincent van Gogh, and the art of his time, accessible to as many people as possible.
One of the museum’s main objectives is the management and conservation of the collection.
The main Van Gogh Museum building opened in 1973, and was designed by Gerrit Rietveld, though the designer never saw it completed in his lifetime.
Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa’s temporary exhibition wing was completed in 1999.
For seven months from 2012 to 2013, the Rietveld building was shut for refurbishment, and the collection was moved offsite to the Hermitage Amsterdam.
In 2014, the Kurokawa wing closed for renovation, and recently reopened with the addition of the glass entrance hall.
Axel Rüger became the director of the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, in April 2006.
Rüger studied art history at the Freie Universität in Berlin and then at the University of Cambridge, before receiving his PhD at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.
He worked at a number of museums in Atlanta, Detroit and Washington, until he was appointed the curator of Dutch Paintings (1600–1800) at the National Gallery, London, in 1999.
He has published and lectured widely on 17th-century Dutch art, and in 2004 was selected to take part in the Clore Leadership Programme.
Rüger was one of five judges for this year’s Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year
The museum’s profile has been raised even fur- ther this year with the 125th anniversary of the Dutch artist’s death, which the museum has marked with the opening of a major new entrance hall.
The museum tells the story of the post-impressionist artist, Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) through its huge collection of his work – 200 paintings, 500 drawings and almost his entire written correspondence.
We’re all familiar with the life of Van Gogh, but it is the same stories that tend to prevail: an under-appreciated artist who went mad, cut off his ear and killed himself.
“Myth-busting is our daily bread,” says Rüger. “We have to combat the myths about Van Gogh, but we also have to stand up to them.”
Rüger became the director of the Van Gogh Museum nine years ago, moving from the National Gallery, London, where he was the curator of Dutch paintings 1600-1800.
He feels exceptionally lucky to have been given that chance at such a young age, and working under then-director Neil MacGregor gave him a good idea of the path he was on.
Does he have to be an expert in Van Gogh to run the Van Gogh Museum?
Rüger says not, though he clearly knows more than most about the Dutch artist. Van Gogh, a lonely and poverty-stricken man, only sold one painting in his lifetime, and was entirely monetarily supported by his brother Theo.
The hundreds of letters Vincent wrote, that the museum holds many of, tell of the artist’s troubled life in phenomenal detail.
“But the first question everyone asks is: ‘So what about the ear?’” Rüger says. “The famous issues feed the popular imagination so much we thought we might as well tell the whole story of the ear in explicit terms.
So we devote a whole wall of the gallery to Van Gogh’s mental illness and the loss of his ear. We also devote part of the space to his death, with a picture of the grave, because that’s also in people’s minds, and we must address that rather than try to redress it.”
Attracting hoards of visitors each year by the fame of its subject alone, the museum doesn’t have to market itself much.
“It is disproportionate how famous the artist is, how famous this museum is as a result and what that generates in terms of interest, in terms of attention and in terms of opportunities to work with other parties,” Rüger says.
“All the big kids want to play with us – they want Van Gogh loans, they want Van Gogh exhi- bitions. That means we can collaborate with the really big players, even though we’re quite a small museum in comparison.”
Rüger has collaborated with the Munch Museet in Oslo, Norway, for the first show in the reopened exhibition wing of the Van Gogh Museum. The exhibition Munch: Van Gogh puts Norwegian artist Edvard Munche many themes and approaches the two artists have in common, though they never met in life.
“Van Gogh was a great source of inspiration for Munch, and the 125th anniversary of Vin- cent’s death gave us the perfect moment to celebrate him with this show,” Rüger says.
The Van Gogh Museum first opened in 1973, with a building designed by architect, and founder of the De Stijl movement, Gerrit Rietveld, who died nine years before the completion of the project. The exhibition wing was built in 1999 by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa, who died in 2007.
More than 30 years after the museum first opened it was very much in need of renova- tion. This began in 2012 with the entire refurbishment of the Rietveld-designed part, when the collection was moved offsite to the Hermitage Amsterdam. Then in 2014, the Kurokawa wing closed for the entrance hall to be added.
This new glass structure was developed by local architecture firm Hans van Heeswijk Architecte, with advice from Kurokawa’s studio.
Over a million visitors flock to see Van Gogh’s work each year, so the new entrance gives the museum more space to accommo- date them.
The old part of the museum that stayed open during the renovation was built for visitor numbers of 300,000 a year, so the added space will alleviate pressure by add- ing more room and better facilities.
The new entrance will also “improve the flow of visitors by creating a better connec- tion between the Kurokawa exhibition wing and the Rietveld building,” Rüger says.
Facing on to Amsterdam’s Museumplein, the entrance also means visitors can get to the Stedelijk art gallery and recently reno- vated Rijksmuseum with greater ease.
Van Gogh Museum at a glance
The Van Gogh Museum aims to make the life and work of Vincent van Gogh, and the art of his time, accessible to as many people as possible.
One of the museum’s main objectives is the management and conservation of the collection.
The main Van Gogh Museum building opened in 1973, and was designed by Gerrit Rietveld, though the designer never saw it completed in his lifetime.
Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa’s temporary exhibition wing was completed in 1999.
For seven months from 2012 to 2013, the Rietveld building was shut for refurbishment, and the collection was moved offsite to the Hermitage Amsterdam.
In 2014, the Kurokawa wing closed for renovation, and recently reopened with the addition of the glass entrance hall.
Axel Rüger at a glance
Axel Rüger became the director of the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, in April 2006.
Rüger studied art history at the Freie Universität in Berlin and then at the University of Cambridge, before receiving his PhD at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.
He worked at a number of museums in Atlanta, Detroit and Washington, until he was appointed the curator of Dutch Paintings (1600–1800) at the National Gallery, London, in 1999.
He has published and lectured widely on 17th-century Dutch art, and in 2004 was selected to take part in the Clore Leadership Programme.
Rüger was one of five judges for this year’s Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year
