Hermitage Amsterdam.

Interview with Mr. Ernst Veen - Managing Director

Photo: Rahi Rezvani by A-A-P | Victor Alling

Text: Hans Kops

Published in 2010

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I IMMEDIATELY SAW WHAT IT COULD BE LIKE. 

WE WOULD ESTABLISH A SATELLITE MUSEUM OF THE HERMITAGE HERE.

It is quite likely that Tsar Peter the Great rested his very eyes upon(and perhaps even visited) the building that would house, more than three centuries later, part of the art collection accumulated by his Imperial offspring. In1696 the Russian sovereign spent a lengthy incognito sojourn in Amsterdam and nearby Zaandam. His primary reason for coming here was to learn how this area had expanded into one of the major centres of trade and  culture of his time. In addition to practicing what would now qualify as pure corpo- ratee spionage(he even worked incognito on a shipyard to see how the Dutch built their ships), this enterprising Tsar also developed a genuine love of Dutch and Flemish painting.
As such, he planted the seed for a collecting frenzy that would place him, with generations of Romanovsto follow, among the most prominent buyers of art in Europe. Their passion would make the Hermitage(the palace complex of the Imperial family in St. Petersburg) one of therichest museums in the world. The impression that the monumental building on the Amstel River in Amsterdam makes upon its countless visitors today is not so different to the one it would have made upon Tsar Peter in his time. The classical features so popular in 17th century Holland are prominently visible throughout this former convalescent home for the Christian sick and elderly. Only the mansized gilded letters that have adorned the façade since the opening in the early summer of last year refer to the conversion of the building into a museum: the Hermitage Amsterdam, the first foreign branch of the state museum in St.Petersburg with the same name. 

UNIQUE JOINT VENTURE

The origin of this project – one of the first truly cross-border joint ventures in the world of fine art – can be traced back to the mid-nineties. At the time Ernst Veen, then director of the Amsterdam De Nieuwe Kerk museum, maintained excellent contacts with Michael Piotrovsky, the person respon- sible for the more than three million artefacts making up the collection of the Russian Hermitage. They organised exhibitions together and, during their meetings at the Hermitage, Veen noticed the deplorable condition part of the building was in.“The Hermitage has 22 works by Rembrandt, an incredbly precious asset,but they were poorly lit and ventilated, and overall the hall wasn’t equipped for the exhibition of objects of such artistic value. Piotrovsky agreed with me wholeheartedly.” In response, Veen decided to seek Dutch funding to renovate the hall. In this way he hoped to contribute to the conservation of these works which, after all, are part of the Dutch cultural heritage. A few years later, the success of this initiative led to similar work being done to an adjacent hall housing other Dutchand Flemish masterpieces. This brought a significant impulse to the relationship between the two parties. Perhaps even more importantly, the team of Russian conservators and managers of the Hermitage (headed by Piotrovsky) learnt to appreciate Veen’s dynamic approach, and they eventually asked him for advice on a problem the Hermitage had been grappling with for some time. The museum’s permanent exhibition offered space to only five per cent of its collection;by far the majority of the works were not on view. Michael Piotrovsky: “An art collection such as this should be available for all the world to admire.”
 
PURCHASED FOR ONE EURO 

When Ernst Veen returned to Amsterdam, these words resounded in his ears until someone informed him that De Amstelhof was likely to become available soon. Reportedly, the owner (a non-profit foundation) was willing to sell the monumental premises for a very modest price provided that it would be used for housing a cultural or social institution. Ernst Veen remembers how all the pieces fell together like a puzzle the first time he walked through the extensive complex.“I immediately saw what it could be like. We would establish a satellite museum of the Hermitage here. I called Piotrovsky straight away and a week later he appeared on my door step. I will never forget his re- sponse: It is still a crazy idea, but this is a  fantastic venue for it”. This provided the impulse for a complex and challenging development project that would ultimately take more than ten years to complete. The first landmark was achieved when the City of Amsterdam pledged to buy the building and make it available as the Amsterdam branch of the Hermitage for the symbolic amount of only one
euro. In response, numerous sponsors pitched in: the Dutch government, cultural foundations and private art lovers a like. Bit by bit, Veen and the Hermitage on the Amstel Foundation collected sufficient funding to balance the budget and a construction team was assigned to supervise the drastic renovation. This phase,too,required a great deal of cultural entrepreneurship and creativity: “In those early days, it was a challenge to tap sufficient financial  resources to keep things going. For  instance, I funded a feasibility study using the prize money I had been awarded in my capacity as director of my other museum. The results of that study enable dusto take the next steps.” Another creative and hugely success fulsolution was the decision to start on a small scale, in 2004. “Looking back, that was a perfect exercise. By starting with the Small Hermitage we managed to keep all parties enthusiastic and received confirmation that the interest in the Hermitage collection was enormous. Over six hundred thousand people visited our exhibitions. This also allowed us to test our ability to organise at least two rotating exhibitions a year. The whole concept proved immensely successful and we have carried this through today.”

MOST POPULAR MUSEUM

In 2010 the Hermitage Amsterdam proved to be the most popular museum in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, a region richly blessed with museums. Since its opening by Queen Beatrix and Russian President Medvedev in June 2009 it has seen more than 700,000 visitors, causing this Russian-Dutch newcomer to earn itself a place of honour on the list of the most  frequently visited attractions in the country. Ernst Veen and his team have succeeded in giving the buried treasure of the Hermitage a new home in the region where a large part of it was originally created. “This museum functions as a bridge. We are already noticing a lot more attention for the historic ties which, over the ages, have connected Russia and the Netherlands at various levels. I find it a satisfying thought that we have been able to contribute to this.”
 

www.hermitage.nl