Art Of The Day Weekly

The Stedelijk in war

AMSTERDAM – The Netherlands, like France, suffered immensely from the German invasion. The Netherlands also had exceptional art collections that were robbed by the Nazis. As the origins of certain works hanging in the museums seems doubtful a recent investigation was carried out on plundered goods. A few examples are looked into in detail in this exhibition that focuses on the case of the Stedelijk Museum, an emblem of a certain form of resistance during the occupation. While it was constrained to organize retrospectives oriented by the Nazis, the institution tried to preserve a certain space of freedom by presenting artists who were not glorified by the regime. Its director, Willem Sandberg, was an ace in typographic design and thus falsified identification documents for opponents while building a bunker in the dunes to hide the museum’s collection. As of April 1943 he too had to go into hiding, but returned after the Liberation with an unforgettable exhibition inaugurated by Piet Mondrian’s famous Victory Boogie Woogie.
• The Stedelijk Museum & The Second World War, at the Stedelijk Museum, from 27 February to 31 May 2015.

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