ROTTERDAM.- Art Rotterdam, the first international event that dared to open its doors once more, was a resounding success. With a surprisingly large number of enthusiastic and keen visitors, 16 outdoor artworks, 74 artists in Prospects and more than 100 participating galleries, this annual art event once again - for the twenty-second time - proved its unstoppable vitality. The unique, once-off summer edition offered art enthusiasts from the Netherlands and abroad a welcome opportunity to once again experience the latest developments in the visual arts live and up close. Erik Mattijssen, who is represented by the Rotterdam-based gallery Cokkie Snoei, won both the NN Art Award and the Public Award. Fons Hof comments, "The unique summer edition of Art Rotterdam exceeded our expectations. Although there were still a number of Covid-19 restrictions in place, the enthusiasm and motivation of visitors and participants alike made it all the more worthwhile. Fantastic sales results underscore this. We are already looking forward to the next edition: Thursday 10 February to Sunday 13 February 2022!"

Fons Hof summarises: "Galerie Willem Baars sold a large painting by Morgan Betz, priced at € 9,400, to the Kunstmuseum Den Haag, while Galerie Frank Taal sold four ice paintings by Daan den Houter for € 700 each. The buyers could enjoy the works of art for four hours before they melted. Althuis Hofland Fine Arts sold six paintings by Russian artist Yuri Rodekin, priced between € 1,200 and € 3,200, while Galerie Lumen Travo sold a large work by Beninese artist Thierry Oussou for € 14,000 to the Centraal Museum Utrecht and the French gallery Binome sold three inkjet prints by French artist Mustapha Azeroual to private Dutch collections, each priced at € 17,000.

Prospects: Mondriaan Fund showed talent

During the ninth edition of Prospects, the Mondriaan Fund displayed the work of artists who recently received funding to launch their professional career. A total of 74 artists took part in the exhibition. Just as in 2020, the guest curator was Johan Gustavsson, co-director of 1646, The Hague, board member of The Naked and Page Not Found and a lecturer at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague (KABK). Eelco van der Lingen, Director of the Mondriaan Fund, comments, "Prospects '21 turned out to be a museum-worthy presentation that offered the artists a respectable platform. This is even more important considering the few opportunities to showcase art in the last year and a half. And also rightfully so because these artists are the ones who will be defining the future of the visual arts in the post-coronavirus world. A special thanks to Art Rotterdam, which had to change and update its plans repeatedly. The perseverance this required resulted in a fantastic summer edition."

NN Art Public Award




The first anniversary of the NN Art Award was celebrated with the presentation of a Public Award. Visitors to Art Rotterdam and other art enthusiasts could vote for their favourite artist, either at the fair or online. Quite a few took advantage of this opportunity. The nominee who received the most votes, Erik Mattijssen who is represented by the Rotterdam-based gallery Cokkie Snoei, received five thousand euros.

NN Art Award 2021 presented to Erik Mattijssen

During the opening of Art Rotterdam at the Van Nellefabriek on 30 June, the NN Art Award was presented for the fifth time. The winner was Erik Mattijssen of the Cokkie Snoei gallery in Rotterdam. As the winner Erik received ten thousand euros. The other three nominees were:

• Priscila Fernandes, Division of Labour, London
• Lilian Kreutzberger, CINNNAMON, Rotterdam
• Claudia Martínez Garay, GRIMM, Amsterdam

The jury consisted of Imara Limon (curator of the Amsterdam Museum), Reyn van der Lugt (collector), Suzanne Swarts (director of Museum Voorlinden), Koen Taselaar (artist and nominee for the NN Art Award 2020), Els Drummen (curator of CODA Apeldoorn) and Elisah van den Bergh (curator of the NN Art Collection). Elisah van den Bergh, curator of the NN Art Collection, comments, "The goal of the NN Art Award is to offer a platform to exceptional talent. The diversity, quality and creativity of the artists who have completed an art programme in the Netherlands is impressive and inspiring. We are proud to have the opportunity to support these artists and, this year, even more so with the public award. This gave viewers the possibility to cast a vote. More than 1,300 art enthusiasts voted for their favourite artist online for this award!"

Rotterdam Art Week

With over 75 events at around 60 locations, Rotterdam Art Week looks back on a successful summer edition. Events like Art Rotterdam, OBJECT and The New Current were the highlights of this festival for art, design and architecture enthusiasts, supplemented with special openings at museums and art institutions, open studios, outdoor presentations and various pop-up exhibitions, such as Fake Me Hard at Atelier Van Lieshout and a diverse programme at STEUR, Home of the Unlikely, also in the Merwe-Vierhavens (M4H) area. "After a year and a half, one of the most important art festivals in the Netherlands was finally able to be organised with a special summer edition. Fantastic! With more events and locations than in previous years, the public could enjoy a broad and accessible programme. From the Spanish Cube in the West to the Brienenoord Island in the South, Rotterdam was the place to be for new encounters with art, design, photography and architecture." - Renske Satijn, Director of the Rotterdam Festivals