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Endless Reflections

The opening exhibition, ‘Endless Reflections’, is a selection from the oeuvre of Rotterdam artist Willem van Veldhuizen (1954–2025). Fascinated by the architecture of museums, he painted unique windows onto the world.

up to and including 30 September 2026

Depot

Opened: Thursday to Sunday

Compartment A3.06

Of the nine months Willem van Veldhuizen (Rotterdam, 1954–2025) spent working on a painting, he would spend seven months simply looking. His paintings may appear realistic, but their compositions as a whole are anything but. His work is restrained, yet those who look more closely discover an entire universe—precisely in what is not immediately obvious.

Van Veldhuizen was fascinated by the architecture of museums: spaces stripped of all superfluities, designed solely to serve the art. When a shadow on a sculpture, a reflection in a marble floor, or a striking view moved him, he sought to capture that feeling, that atmosphere. This preoccupation would define his forty-year career.

To capture that atmosphere, he consistently used the same symmetrical composition: through the window in the background, the view opens onto a green garden or a skyline. The reality of the building and the world outside is reflected in the large floor surface in the foreground. The background is highly detailed, the foreground more vague. The space is reduced to its essence. Omitted details, softened contours, and colors that subtly shift. What remains is an image that balances between recognition and abstraction.
Van Veldhuizen painted ideal worlds, inviting the viewer to see through his eyes.

image header: Willem van Veldhuizen - Rio Curves