The Stedelijk Museum Schiedam has received a donation of a hitherto unknown work from 1970 by Jan Schoonhoven. The relief is not mentioned anywhere and has never been exhibited. What is special is that the artist made R70-71 himself. During this period he often outsourced the execution to his assistant.
“We are very pleased that the owner presented this work to us and eventually donated it to our museum,” says museum director Anne de Haij. The former owner, Maria de Haan, was a Friend of the museum. Jan Schoonhoven (1914-1994) is one of the most important Dutch artists of the second half of the twentieth century. He also made an international name for himself with his white reliefs.
Schoonhoven’s R70-71 can be seen at the reopening of the museum on Saturday, 14th May 2022 in the exhibition From Oerbeest to smoking croissant with recent acquisitions and old acquaintances from the museum collection, until 26th June 2022. There is also a larger 1971 work by Jan Schoonhoven from the museum collection, a donation from the Altena Boswinkel Collection. The title R70-71 means that the work is the 71st relief he made in 1970.
“In a sense, this work is new,” says Catrien Schreuder, Head of Exhibitions and Collections. Jan Schoonhoven is a beloved artist, his work often hangs in museums, but this has never been seen anywhere outside Maria de Haan’s living room.
