12 April untill 24 August 2025
Floris Verster - At home in nature
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In the exhibition Floris Verster - At Home in Nature, the love of everyday nature is the starting point. For the first time, Museum De Lakenhal is combining work by the well-known Leiden painter Floris Verster (1861-1927) with contemporary art. Annelies Dijkman, Esther Hoogendijk and Seet van Hout are inspired by Verster and enter into dialogue with his work. From life-size paintings to sculptures and a pop-up garden; the love of local nature is reflected in each work. The exhibition will be on view from 12 April 12 till 24 August 2025.
Revolutionary flower still lifes
Floris Verster is considered the great innovator of the flower still life. Whereas his predecessors mainly had an eye for exotic flowers and plants, Verster was the first Dutch artist to opt radically for the everyday nature around him. In his revolutionary flower still lifes, field flowers and “weeds” shine in all their simplicity. Verster found his inspiration mainly in his own garden on Groenoord estate in Leiden. In addition to masterpieces from Museum De Lakenhal's own extensive collection, the exhibition also includes works from the Rijksmuseum, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Kröller Müller Museum, Naturalis and others.
contemporary ART
Especially for this exhibition, Museum De Lakenhal commissioned artists Annelies Dijkman (1958), Esther Hoogendijk (1987) and Seet van Hout (1957) to develop new work, using Verster as inspiration. This work will be presented alongside existing work by the artists. The fascination and love for everyday nature form a common thread throughout.
Esther Hoogendijk and Seet van Hout drew inspiration, among other things, from the forms in Verster's work. Van Hout takes the beauty, whimsicality, bloom and decay of flowers from her own garden as her point of departure. She develops new monumental drawings and paintings that are not created with a brush, but by pouring paint on the ground and perforating paper. In her artworks, she plays with details from Verster's work that merge seamlessly with Van Hout's own formal language.
The sculptures of Esther Hoogendijk are living works of art, created from materials such as seeds, sprouts, grasses, plaster and paper. Plants and flowers can literally be found in these sculptures. The seeds in her work are brought to life by sun, water and touch. As a result, the sculptures follow a natural process of growth, flowering and decay. Referring to vase shapes by Verster, Hoogendijk developed large clay sculptures for this presentation.
Artist and gardener Annelies Dijkman designed a flower garden for the museum's 17th-century forecourt. Her installation consists of flowering plants that entice the senses. Visitors can touch the plants and flowers to experience the scents, colors and textures, as well as the changing of the seasons.
Activities
There is plenty to do around the exhibition. For example, the evening program Lakenhal Late on 11 April is all about the garden. Follow the Floris Verster route in the Singelpark and see the flowers Floris Verster painted "in real life". There is also a Family Route with creative assignments for the whole family.
You can also work on your own in the Open Atelier or with the photo assignment ‘Spot your own Verster’.
view entire program
On Floris Verster
Floris Verster (1861-1927) is known in Dutch art history as the great innovator of the flower still life. In his hometown of Leiden, he paves the way for modern art. Floris Verster inherited his love of nature and art from his father. In fact, he is administrator at the Rijksmuseum of Natural History (now Naturalis) and treasurer at artists' association Ars Aemula Naturae. As a child, Floris spends hours at the museum meticulously copying stuffed birds and other animals.
At age 12, Verster learns the intricacies of drawing from cattle painter G.J. Bos, and later George Hendrik Breitner introduces him to Impressionism. The fascination with Impressionism will remain, even though he receives academic training at the Art Academy of The Hague.
In 1888, Verster begins experimenting with life-size floral still lifes. He breaks through with the giant painting “Flowers and Leaves”: on which he depicts field flowers and weeds almost abstractly. The work shocks, but it is his breakthrough within the avant-garde and exhibitions of his work follow worldwide.
In 1892, Floris Verster and his brand-new wife Jenny Kamerlingh Onnes enter the Groenoord estate, next to Leiden. They lead a reclusive existence, and the gigantic park garden is a source of inspiration and sustenance for them. Verster's international success gradually declines, but his work remains beloved by buyers. In 1926, Jenny dies. In one of the ponds behind the house is a small island where Verster enjoys spending time, but where he unhappily slips and drowns in January 1927. His work is still loved by many and is part of several museum collections, including the Rijksmuseum and Kröller Müller Museum. Museum De Lakenhal has the largest collection with 160 objects.
In de pers
‘Floris Verster schilderde de schoonheid van een boeket in verval op kolossaal formaat.’
- De Volkskrant
‘Het werk van Floris Verster is geen stilleven, het is een altaarstuk.’
- De Groene Amsterdammer
‘Floris Verster was in Nederland een voorloper in licht en kleur.’
- EW Magazine
‘Floris Versters bloemstillevens zijn revolutionair te noemen: geen exotische pracht, maar eenvoudige veldbloemen en onkruid.’
- Leids Nieuwsblad
Dank
Thanks to
The exhibition Floris Verster - At Home in Nature is made possible by the City of Leiden, BPD Cultuurfonds, Mondriaan Fonds, the Cultuurfonds Zuid-Holland, the Lucas van Leyden Patronage, Fonds 1818, Stichting Gifted Art and Friends of the Singelpark.