Medha Kapur of Saffronart shares a note on museum openings and reopenings around the world in 2013

Rijskmuseum

Mumbai: In 2013, international museum openings of note include the grand re-opening of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam after a 10 year closure for a massive renovation. This project will cost $480 million by the time the doors open again in April, and includes a new display for the permanent collection, a renewed building, new public facilities, a revamped garden. Only Rembrandt’s most celebrated painting ‘The Night Watch’ will return to its former place.  Paintings by Johannes Vermeer, Frans Hals and Jan Steen will shine like never before in the new Rijksmuseum. Together, these paintings tell the story of the glorious Golden Age, when the Netherlands led the way on the world stage and international trade brought great wealth, patronage and an unprecedented flourishing of the arts. Apart from the Golden Age, the new Rijksmuseum will also tell the story of 800 years of Dutch art and history using 8,000 objects including porcelain and ceramics, silver and glass, and furniture, prints, drawings, photographs and costumes.

The Night Watch by Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, 1642
Image Courtesy: http://www.thehistoryblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Night-Watch-Rembrandt.jpg

Johannes Vermeer -Woman reading a letter
Image Courtesy: https://www.rijksmuseum.nl

Also due to open in 2013 is the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada, dedicated to the acquisition, preservation and display of artefacts and works of art relating to the intellectual, cultural, artistic and religious heritage of Islamic communities.

Overview: Ismaili center (left), Museum (right)

View of the Ismaili centre over the waterfall

Aga Khan Museum, Toronto

The museum collection already contains over one thousand artefacts and artworks and spans over one thousand years of history. The objects – in ceramic, metalwork, ivory, stone and wood, textile and carpet, glass and rock crystal objects, parchment and illustrated paintings on paper – present an overview of the artistic accomplishments of Muslim civilisations from the Iberian Peninsula to China. Up to 200 pieces from the museum’s collection will be showcased in a permanent gallery that will combine state of the art display systems with innovative approaches to design and interpretation. The collection incorporates miniatures and manuscripts brought together by the late Prince Sadruddin and Princess Catherine Aga Khan.