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exhibition

Power to the Flower

  • till 6 April 2025
  • Drents Museum De Buitenplaats

An exhibition of masterpieces from the field of Art Nouveau, in which flowers play the leading role.

After a short renovation, Museum De Buitenplaats in Eelde will reopen on Saturday 5 October 2024 with a new direction and under a new name: Drents Museum De Buitenplaats. Art in the Art Nouveau style will have a central role in the renovated museum. The collection of art from around 1900 will be used as a starting point. The central theme for the opening exhibition Power to the Flower are flowers in the style of the Dutch Art Nouveau. The flower as a symbol for the arrival of a new era, exactly as in the new Drents Museum De Buitenplaats.

Masterpieces collection in Power to the Flower

With masterpieces and surprising objects from the collection of the Drents Museum and a few excursions to the present, Drents Museum De Buitenplaats takes the visitor on a journey into the flower imagination from around 1900. The exhibition includes works by Chris Lebeau, Julie de Graag, Simon Moulijn, Johanna van Eijbergen, Carel Adolphe Lion Cachet, Ruud van Empel and Saskia Boelsums.

Flowers as a starting point

The greatest source of inspiration for artists around 1900 is nature. During their training, they learn to draw plants and flowers, first portrayed realistically, then increasingly simplified and reduced to the essence. These beautiful stylized flowers serve as ornaments in wallpaper, fabrics, furniture and all kinds of other decorations. Flowers are also often the starting point in visual arts. Artists give flowers a ‘code language’, as it were, to express feelings and ideas. The artists around 1900 speak that language like no other. For example, the lily represents innocence and spirituality, the rose represents love and resurrection, and the poppy is the symbol of dreaminess and transience.

Julie de Graag, 'Godetia', 1919

Open Day 5 October

Drents Museum De Buitenplaats will open on Saturday 5 October 2024 with a special Open Day. The renovated museum with the Power to the Flower exhibition, the Nijsinghhuis, the garden and the Oranjerie can be visited free of charge from 11:00 to 17:00. During the day there are various activities for young and old.

Photo competition

Photos of a flower or flowers for the Power to the Flower photo competition could be send to Drents Museum De Buitenplaats till  the 29th of September.

An expert jury consisting of Harry Tupan (general director of Drents Museum De Buitenplaats), Sonja van der Meer (director of Het Drentse Landschap), Saskia Boelsums (visual artist) and Johan Wolfard (photographer and florist) – selected a top five and the ultimate winner from the entries. This will be announced at the Open Day on Saturday 5 October.

The opening exhibition Power to the Flower - Flowers in Art Nouveau can be seen from October 5, 2024 till April 6, 2025.

Drents Museum de Buitenplaats Power to the Flower is made possible by the province of Drenthe, the municipality of Tynaarlo, the Beringer Hazewinkel Foundation, the Drentse Landschap Foundation, the Friends of De Buitenplaats Foundation, the Gifted Art Foundation and the De Buitenplaats Business Club.