From the museum website, 19 January 2010
The wealth of the art collection of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen takes up central position at the exhibition entitled Inside Out. Due to maintenance of its depots, over 12,000 art objects cross over, right through the Museum Park, to the daylight hall of the Kunsthal. Inside Out can safely be considered the biggest logistic operation ever within the history of the Kunsthal: for ten days in a row two lorries packed with art travel back and forth. Over a thousand paintings, amongst which numerous stunning acquisitions, provide an impressive outlook on the treasures that the Rotterdam museum accommodates within its depots. The high quality of the works and the enormous quantity make the exhibition a feast for the eyes!
Art Treasury
Kunsthal Rotterdam has triplicated its usual wall surface within the daylight hall in order to be able to show as many paintings as possible to the public. Numerous seventeenth century masterpieces by Frans Hals, Jacob van Ruisdael, Jan Steen, Paulus Moreelse and many others are put on display in salon arrangement, from top to bottom. Key works of Modern Art, from Giorgio Morandi to Frank Stella, and twentieth century art movements like minimal art, pop art and CoBrA have been brought together in a so-called ‘White Cube’. Besides collected Dutch works by amongst others Jan Schoonhoven, René Daniels and Co Westerik, also other startling paintings from the museum collection are placed in the spotlight. Many other works of art, art-historically of major importance, are presented as hidden treasures. Kunsthal Rotterdam literally turns Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen inside out! By opening up the diverse collection visitors get the opportunity to discover their personal favourites.
Shedding Light on Collecting
Several museums in the Netherlands are planning to, or are even actively busy constructing new depots. A lot of space is required to store all art treasures from the Dutch musea. The exhibition Inside Out causes the public to come up with questions like: how should art treasures be preserved when you are aware of the fact that in the past assessment criteria were so different from those now considered valid? What necessity is there to maintain and keep art objects that are not often shown and what are the dilemmas involved? At what pace is the Dutch art collection growing and would disposing of works of art not be a far better idea than constructing new depots? And, moreover, would it not be good idea to use institutions without a collection of their own, like the Kunsthal, to actually show the treasures present within the depots of several Dutch museums?