Boijmans – Van Beuningen

Top of the Dutch Art Museums

Museum Boijmans – Van Beuningen is the number one museum in Rotterdam and is one of the most famous Art museums in the Netherlands. Boijmans attracts many visitors from the Netherlands and abroad and shows a number of unique paintings such as ‘The little tower of Babel‘ by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, ‘The three Marias at the grave‘ by Jan van Eyck, ‘Titus‘ by Rembrandt and the ‘Mae West Lips sofa‘ by Salvador Dalí. The Boijmans – Van Beuningen collection ranges from medieval European works to modern art and during your visit to the museum you will make a journey through the history of art.

Boijmans Museum Rotterdam: from Old Masters till modern art

The history of museum Boijmans – Van Beuningen goes back to 1849, when the collector Boijmans left his collection to the city of Rotterdam and in the 1950’s the collection of shipping magnate Van Beuningen was purchased. The museum collection of Boijmans – Van Beuningen is very diverse: you can admire works from old masters, but also modern paintings, product design, applied arts, sculptures, prints and drawings, photography, video and film. The Boijmans prints are one of the most significant collections in the world!

Boijmans collection of masterpieces

The Boijmans – Van Beuningen Museum owns a number of unique masterpieces. It is the only museum in the Netherlands with works of Van Eyck, Titiaan, Jeroen Bosch, Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Dali. Some famous masterpieces that are displayed at Boijmans are ‘Christ in the house of Mary and Martha‘ by Pieter Aertsen, ‘The glorification of the Virgin‘ of Geertgen tot Sint Jans, ‘The Wayfarer‘ and ‘St. Christopher carrying the Christ child‘ of Hieronymus Bosch.

Surrealist and modern art

In addition to the old masterpieces you can see modern and surrealistic art at the Boijmans – Van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam. The large Boimans collection contains intriguing works of Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, Kees van Dongen, Paul Cézanne, Piet Mondriaan, Salvador Dalí, René Magritte and Man Ray. Your imagination will also be fired by the films, objects and extraordinary books that are also part of this collection. The art is not only displayed inside the Boijmans – Van Beuningen Museum, but also outside in their big sculpture garden.

Boijmans Arts, Crafts and Design

Furthermore, the Boijmans – Van Beuningen museum contains an Arts, Crafts and Design collection, which shows how artefacts have developed during the past eight centuries. From medieval pottery, old crockery and glassworks from the Golden Age to Rietveld furniture, modern office equipment and contemporary Dutch Design. Many of these appliances are reflected in paintings in the rest of the Boijmans museum collection. For instance, you can see the real plates and spoons that were used a model for one of Jan Steen’s still lifes.

Prints & Drawings collection Boijmans Rotterdam

The Boijmans – Van Beuningen prints and drawings, which are part of one of the world’s most important collections, contain works of Pisanello, Dürer, Rembrandt, Watteau and Cézanne. There are regularly changing exhibitions showing the prints and drawings from the Boijmans collection. You can also retrieve any print or drawing from the collection digitally. Admission to the Boijmans prints & drawings collection is free.

Changing exhibitions and Restaurant Pavilion

The Boijmans – Van Beuningen in Rotterdam organizes a lot of changing exhibitions, so there is always something new to see at the museum. Major exhibitions in recent years include ´The big eyes of Kees van Dongen’ (2010), ‘Hella Jongerius’ (2010), ´The Art of Fashion´ (2009) and ´The Road to Van Eyck’ (2012-2013 ). Check the website of Museum Boijmans – Van Beuningen to find out which exhibitions are currently on. Boijmans also organizes guided tours, lectures and activities for children such as a kids route and a family day. Have a break at the Boijmans Museum and have drink at their espresso bar or have lunch at Restaurant Pavilion.