THE HAGUE.- A new art fund has been established in The Netherlands, created to help artists realise ambitious productions. Projects realised with the Funds’ support will be acquired by the Hartwig Art Foundation and donated to the Dutch National art collection.

Encouraging experimentation and creativity at the highest level, the Hartwig Art Production | Collection Fund creates a framework and holds the funding for an annual series of new artworks, collaborating with artists to help them realise ambitious production ideas. Upon production, the artworks will be donated to the national art collection through the Hartwig Art Foundation, thus contributing permanently to Dutch and international society.

Ingrid van Engelshoven, Minister of Education, Culture and Science, The Netherlands said: “Fantastic that the Hartwig Art Production | Collection Fund is coming! Thanks to the efforts of the Hartwig Art Foundation, this artistic project supports young artists in actually shaping their creative ideas and innovative projects. This is badly needed in these times. In addition, it is important that their works of art are preserved for the Netherlands through donation to the Dutch state.”

For its inaugural year, the Hartwig Art Production | Collection Fund proposes a special project that will run over the course of 2020-2021 and will respond to the critical moment artists and institutions are working in now.




To emphasise the importance of post academic programmes and residency organisations for artists and curators in The Netherlands, highlighting their enormous contribution to a culturally vibrant society, the Fund is inviting their alumni to define the parameters of the 2020/21 project.

The Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten Amsterdam (which celebrates in 2020 its 150th year), the Jan van Eyck Academie (Maastricht), De Ateliers and If I Can’t Dance, I Don’t Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution (both based in Amsterdam), BAK basis voor actuele kunst (Utrecht) and CBK Zuid Oost/AIR residency (Bijlmer) and Tent (Rotterdam), all of whom work with artists, are invited to nominate a long-list of 35 artists who have attended their programs.

A group of small and mid-size institutions across the country will receive support to present newly completed works by the participating artists in 2021. The institution formerly known as Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art (Rotterdam), the Vleeshal (Middelburg), Casco Art Institute (Utrecht), Stroom Den Haag and Oude Kerk (Amsterdam) have committed to presentations in the second half of 2021.

De Appel and Framer Framed - both of which actively promote an emerging and diverse group of curators - have nominated five curators, Sharmyn Cruz Rivera, Iris Ferrer, Aude Christel Mgba, Jo-Lene Ong and Rita Ouédraogo, who will be employed by the Hartwig Art Foundation as the curatorial team for this project. Together with the presenting partners the curators will determine the criteria, guidelines and process of selecting 15 participating artists from the long-list. This final group of 15 artists will be invited to participate in the 2020/21 project, with at least one artist represented from each nominating institution in the final list.

The curators will support and collaborate with the artists from the moment of their selection to the presentations of their work: “We are looking forward to the great responsibility and honour of curating an acquisition of contemporary artworks for the Dutch national collection. We are also delighted to be working closely with artists and some of the most forward-thinking cultural institutions in the Netherlands. Together, we aim to rethink and reevaluate what relevant but overlooked narratives and artistic approaches are and how they can be made visible through this project.”

The 2020-2021 budget is 600,000 euros. Each artist will receive an honorarium of 10,000 euros to enable the continuation of their practice; 300,000 euros has been assigned to acquire newly produced works by the selected artists, and - in line with the Funds future activities – these works will then be donated to the Rijkscollectie and thus to the Dutch State.