International exhibition of the year
We are thrilled that the Mission Masterpiece, the first family exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, has been shortlisted for the Museums + Heritage Awards 2024. In the category International Exhibition of the Year, Mission Masterpiece has been selected along with 4 other projects by the jury. Together with the Rijksmuseum team, NorthernLight developed the concept for the exhibition. The final design was done by NorthernLight in close cooperation with Irma Boom office. The design transforms the Phillips Wing of the Rijksmuseum into a huge research lab, inspired by the Rijksmuseum’s renowned Atelier. The exhibition features six research labs, each devoted to a specific object for children to explore. The Museums + Heritage Awards celebrate the very best in the world of museums, galleries, and cultural and heritage visitor attractions. Hundreds of submissions were read, discussed and scrutinised and finally whittled down to the most innovative and inspiring projects.
Investigate real works of art
Mission Masterpiece invites young participants to take on the role of Rijksmuseum restorers and scientists. Step into the six research labs and apply the same methods and techniques used by the museum for its own research. Equipped with a lab coat and a research card, you can utilize UV and X-ray machines, microscopes, fiber analysis, and tree-ring data to identify textile fibers, pigments, watermarks, and dates. As well as inviting visitors to do their own investigations into materials, dates and production methods, Mission Masterpiece gets them to consider some of the questions Rijksmuseum researchers face every day. Questions like: What is it that makes an object a masterpiece? Was this art work really made by the artist who we think made it? If an object is forgery or broken, does it still deserve a place in the museum?
Thank you
We are looking forward to the award evening on May 15, in London. We would like to thank the Rijksmuseum team, Irma Boom Office and production company Brandwacht & Meijer for the inspiring cooperation on this project. Photos by Rijksmuseum and Olivier Middendorp.
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