In-depth study visits on Monday 30 May, 15:45-17:15

1. The Oranjezaal, Huis ten Bosch Palace

One of the most impressive monuments from the seventeenth century is the Oranjezaal (Hall of Orange) in Paleis Huis ten Bosch (Huis ten Bosch palace), nowadays the residence of King Willem-Alexander. CODART members are given the exclusive opportunity to visit this unique ensemble of Dutch and Flemish painting from around 1650 during the CODART 23 congress. We are very grateful to the Royal Family and the Royal Collections in the Hague to have been offered this opportunity.

Amalia van Solms commissioned the decoration of the hall as a tribute to her late husband, Stadholder Frederik Hendrik, who died in 1647. The allegorical representations make up this Gesamtkunstwerk that honors the glory of the House of Orange. The designs of the hall were made by Jacob van Campen and painted by several painters including Jacob Jordaens, Pieter de Grebber and Caesar van Everdingen. The Oranjezaal is also part of the CODART Canon. Find more information on the CODART Canon website.

A limited number of people can participate in the excursion to the Oranjezaal. We like to give priority to members who have never visited the Oranjezaal or will not have this opportunity again soon. We ask you to take this into consideration before signing up for this visit. We expect the number of applications will exceed the maximum number of participants. If that occurs, the selection of participants will be made by drawing lots.

2. Conservation Studio, Mauritshuis

The attic of the Mauritshuis is home to the conservation studio of the museum where a team of conservators work to preserve the collection. Sabrina Meloni, conservator of the Mauritshuis, will lead you around the studio and will talk about the current projects the team is working on. Recently, the team’s discoveries were the main subject of the exhibition Facelifts & Make-overs in which the hidden world of conservation was shown to the public. Other projects include the most recent research conducted on Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring and Van der Weyden’s Lamentation of Christ.

Due to safety requirements in the restoration studio, this excursion is limited to a maximum of twelve participants.

3. Duivenvoorde Castle

In this excursion we will travel to Duivenvoorde Castle. The first foundations of the building were laid in the thirteenth century and it has always remained property of the same family. Because of this, the inventory of the castle has largely remained intact. The fourteen historic interiors that date from the seventeenth until the nineteenth century form a remarkable historical document and tell the history of its former inhabitants. This year, the special bond between Duivenvoorde Castle and the Mauritshuis will be explored in the exhibition Blooming Duivenvoorde which highlights the relations between the castle and the Mauritshuis’s first director Johan Steengracht van Oostcapelle.

4. Prince William V Gallery

When Prince William V Gallery opened in 1774 in The Hague, it was the first public museum of the Netherlands. The gallery was built by Prince William V of Orange-Nassau to exhibit his extensive collection of paintings and share it with the public. The gallery is now home to 150 paintings from the collection of the Mauritshuis. This afternoon you will be lead through this historical museum in The Hague’s city center. The collection holds paintings by Steen, Potter and Rubens, and is on display in a 25-meter-long room in Louis XVI style with a stucco ceiling by Johannes van Gorcum.