The year 2017 marked 100 years of De Stijl. This renowned modern art movement has been presented and celebrated in a series of exhibitions across the country, and Centraal Museum is presenting a final exhibition to round off this nation-wide manifestation. This exhibition is devoted to works by contemporary artists, from the 1990s until today, for whom the iconic works by Rietveld and Mondriaan are something to mock or to emulate, to interpret or to elaborate on.
Influence of De Stijl

In this exhibition, featuring Collectief General Idea, Erik van Lieshout, Katja Mater, Mary Heilmann, Ding Yi, Barbara Visser, Marc Bijl and others, the artists offer some form of commentary on De Stijl.

The exhibition takes its cue from several components of the installation by the influential collective General Idea, called Infected Mondriaan. In response to the HIV/Aids epidemic, they made copies of Mondriaan’s paintings and Rietveld’s chairs, but replacing the colour yellow by the colour green, which Mondriaan detested.

Bart Rutten, artistic director of Centraal Museum: "One hundred years after the establishment of the artists’ journal, De Stijl has become an iconic concept. It represents an uncompromising ambition and lofty ideals that continue to inspire, impress but also annoy artists today. Thanks to these artists, De Stijl remains alive and kicking."