Stedelijk Museum Annual Report 2012

Research and Publications
Research
Among the core tasks of the Stedelijk Museum are research and the presentation
and exchange
of research findings. The collection, the institutional history of the museum, and the
contemporary debate on art and design are integral elements of this research.
The Stedelijk Museum, with its extensive Public Program carried out in collaboration
with cultural and educational partners, functions as a research platform that gives
visitors, artists, scholars, critics, and curators an opportunity to share knowledge
and engage in dialogue.
Publications
The museum produced six publications in 2012, all focusing on the reopening.
In July, an e-book was released to celebrate the reinstallation of the monumental
1986 work by Dan Flavin in the hall above the historic grand staircase. With essays
by Bart Rutten and Britte Sloothaak and an interview with former conservator of the
Stedelijk Museum Dorine Mignot, the publication is titled Dan Flavin: untitled (to Piet
Mondrian through his preferred colors, red, yellow and blue) and untitled (to Piet
Mondrian who lacked green) 2, 1986/2011.
Two publications highlighting the collection were produced to coincide with the
reopening in September.
Stedelijk Collection Reflections is an overview of more than 150 years of
developments in visual art and design worldwide. In 43 richly illustrated essays,
international experts explore the history of modern and contemporary art, offering
new insights on influential artists, designers, and art movements represented in the
Stedelijk collection. The book is an inspiring guide for visitors and a tribute to the
depth and quality of the collection.
Stedelijk in the Pocket, devised and written by the Education Department, shows
the museum both inside and outside as an international meeting place for art and
people. It explores the museum’s provocative, innovative exhibitions and programs
through photographs and quotations, and personal anecdotes from designers, art
connoisseurs, and visitors from the earliest days of the Stedelijk to the reopening.
The booklet runs just 272 pages, in a concise pocket-size format in Dutch or
English.
The inaugural exhibition Beyond Imagination was accompanied by a catalogue with
an introduction by curators Martijn van Nieuwenhuijzen and Kathrin Jentjens and
essays by Mark von Schlegell and Moosje Goosen.
Finally, December saw the publication of Stedelijk Architectuur. In this book,
architecture critic Hans Ibelings traces the history of the Stedelijk Museum, from the
original design plans of A. W. Weissman in 1895 to the completion of the new wing.
Stedelijk Architectuur contains plans, cross sections, and details of the new building
and an interview with architect Mels Crouwel. The photography is by Iwan Baan.
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