Martin Gosselink & Stephan Vanfleteren: Pentimenti, Brieven over pigment, licht en troost
Martine Gosselink, Stephan Vanfleteren
Hannibal, 2026
€39,95
Mauritshuis Museum Director Martine Gosselink and photographer Stephan Vanfleteren write letters to each other – with new work by Vanfleteren
Martine Gosselink, Director of the Mauritshuis, and photographer Stephan Vanfleteren exchanged thirty letters over more than two years. They discuss the meaning and solace of art, the museum collection, hidden messages and histories associated with the paintings, and everything that lies beneath the surface of the paint. One of the many subjects is the pentimenti on the paintings of Rembrandt and others: corrections made by the artist during the painting process.
In their correspondence, they question each other from the perspective of their personalities, filled with many contrasts (woman versus man, Dutchman versus Fleming, administrator versus creative soul), and share stories of their lives. Their engagement with the world around them remains ever-present in the background, balancing between fear and hope.
For each of the museum’s sixteen galleries, Vanfleteren created a photograph that engages with one of the paintings hanging there. His new work exudes a raw vulnerability, which he plays with and reflects. Through his lens, we look at the seventeenth-century counterparts with a fresh perspective. What can those old masters still teach us today?
The visual dialogue between present and past is further enhanced by images of the dozens of artworks cited in the letters. An intimate book of letters for anyone who wants not only to look at art but also to taste, feel, and understand it. ONLY IN DUTCH!
Publication accompanying the exhibition *Pentimenti – Stephan Vanfleteren among the Masters* at the Mauritshuis in The Hague from April 23 to August 23, 2026.
ISBN: 9789493416741
