Without De Stijl, the homes and streets and the very cityscapes of the western world would have looked very different. Moreover, the group that grew up around Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg continues to inspire artists, designers and architects even to this day. It is difficult to overestimate the significance of De Stijl, a movement that played a pivotal role in the European Avant-Garde. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag is now dedicating an entire 750m² wing to Mondrian & De Stijl. 

World’s largest Mondrian collection

With almost 300 works, the Gemeentemuseum’s Mondrian collection is unique in the world. The enormous variety of work enables the Gemeentemuseum to show to the public the full scope of Mondrian’s artistic development, from realistic to abstract.

The exhibition also contains his last – unfinished – masterpiece, the Victory Boogie Woogie (1942-1944, right photo), a monument to New York, the city that exudes rhythm and unbridled vitality. 

De Stijl: vivacious, bright and unrestrained

Gemeentemuseum Den Haag is home to the world’s widest collection of works from De Stijl. The permanent Mondrian & De Stijl exhibition features work by Theo van Doesburg, Vilmos Huszár, Bart van der Leck, J.J.P. Oud, Gerrit Rietveld and Georges Vantongerloo, who, together with Mondrian, were the most important representatives of De Stijl. 

The starting point of De Stijl was the search for an ideal society and a visual language to go with it. By working together, the artists and architects hoped to create Total Art. As the 20th century progressed, art historians began to describe De Stijl more and more as a discursive, structured, almost severe school of art. This was quite different to the intentions of the artists themselves. They used bright, primary colours to create works of art that were vivacious, bright and unrestrained, like the future itself. And it is this positive approach in particular that Gemeentemuseum Den Haag has chosen to focus on in their renewed presentation of De Stijl.

The exhibition as a work of art: Krijn de Koning, Anne Holtrop

The studio of well-known artist Krijn de Koning and architect Anne Holtrop was engaged to design the exhibition. In this project the artist and architect worked closely together – in true De Stijl tradition – to create a total work of art. This forms the framework for the exhibition, yet it is more than just the décor; it is a work of art in itself and carries the title 163 spaces for a work.

The exhibition will be accompanied by the publication The Story of De Stijl / Mondrian to Van Doesburg containing essays by Hans Janssen and Michael White, published by Ludion.