This greenhouse, filled with mosaic sculptures and paintings, will speak to your imagination. Prepare to wonder, gaze, and admire, I can guarantee you won’t be bored.
You will feel like Alice in Wonderland, surrounded by sculptures bigger than you, colorful paintings wherever you look and explanations that will dazzle your mind.
Museum De Beeldenkas
In Schipluiden, a small city southwest of Delft (which is near The Hague) in the Netherlands, you can visit Museum de Beeldenkas. Now, if that is not an off-beat location, then I don’t know what is.
This sculpture (“The Traveler”) marks the road to take. On your way to the museum, you will walk in between grasslands, no tall buildings in sight, until you get to a farmhouse with a greenhouse attached to it. Upon entering, you will have to pay an entrance fee of 4 EUR in cash. The greenhouse is big enough that you can explore it on your own, keeping enough distance to other visitors (there were only four people inside when I went).
Reality vs. expectation
If like me, you’re expecting a tiny museum with some works of art, then you’ll be in for a surprise. The whole greenhouse is filled with sculptures and paintings. The colors that greet you when you enter the greenhouse will work like endorphins and give you an instant happy feeling (unless you don’t like colorful things, in which case you will probably feel uneasy).
Each sculpture has a story to tell. This part will be hard for those of you who can’t read Dutch but believe me, they are expressive. Books and papers explain the meaning of each sculpture, with sculptures grouped by theme. There are the seducers (octopussy, thimble), the gods (of the fallen women, empty heads), and the forgotten veterans. You can see girls representing the Dutch culture, someone’s last kiss or last embrace, and the red army.
Many sculptures will make you laugh, either because they’re fun and surprise you, or perhaps because you’re slightly embarrassed by the guys with chastity tubes and women with large breasts or intriguing woman’s crotches. Even though some sculptures and paintings are sexual in nature, you will have to admit all of them are fantastical.
Behind the sculptures are colorful paintings of the Dutch painter Jacob Kanbier. You might want to do a second round (or a third) to only watch the paintings or watch the combination of the two.
About the artists
Willem Berkhout
The sculptures sprung from Willem’s rich fantasy world. You can see some influence from Gaudi’s work. The sculptures consist are made of mesh or steel pipe with concrete on the inside and outside. Because of this, they weigh from 150 to 1000 kilograms.
Jacob Kanbier
The Dutch painter, Jacob Kanbier, takes his inspiration from Willem de Kooning and Jean-Michel Basquiat, which shows in his rough work. It is almost as if he creates an explosion with hands and paintbrush. He is the founder of the Neosymbolism art trend.
His work was featured in many national and international exhibitions and is increasingly popular among art collectors.
How to get to Museum De Beeldenkas
It is easiest to visit the museum by bike or car. If you have to rely on public transport, then you can take bus 33 from either Delft or Maassluis. From the bus stop, it is only a ten minutes’ walk to the museum. Nearby you can have a drink with apple pie at Bij de buurvrouw.
Location
Gaagweg 15, Schipluiden, the Netherlands
Opening hours
Monday – Friday: 08:00 – 18:00
Saturday – Sunday: 10:00 – 17:00
Tickets
4 EUR in cash
