We, the artists of Breda!

For each edition of the series We, the artists of Breda! initiator and guest curator Jordy Koevoets invites different artists from Breda to create an exhibition. By offering Breda artists a structural platform and bundling their artistic forces, Stedelijk Museum Breda wants to make art from Breda more visible.

We, the artists of Breda! (Part IV) can be seen in the Princenhaags Museum, a special art venue in Breda. Koevoets has invited visual artist Arjan Janssen (Eindhoven, 1965) to this space, motivated by the various ‘chapters’ in the artist’s career and the constant level of quality that Janssen has delivered throughout. At the beginning of his career, Janssen was searching for his metier and changed both subject and medium several times. Later his work has literally become more rectilinear: paintings and drawings with strict, abstract compositions of lines and surfaces in black, white or grey. In recent years Janssen has worked mostly on large canvases with predominantly explosive, expressive brushstrokes.

In addition to his work as an artist, Janssen attaches great value to social engagement in his art practice. For part four of We, the artists of Breda! he has invited Simona Martens (1966, Rotterdam), Masja van den Muijsenberg (1975, Breda) and Branco (1978, Porto) to join him. He knows them from his professional practice as a pedagogical counsellor. Janssen attaches great value to their creative individuality. Work by this trio can be seen together with Janssen’s drawings and paintings. During the exhibition, Branco, Van den Muijsenberg and Martens will create new work in the studio – a former mortuary – behind the Princenhaags Museum. These works will be added to the exhibition, underscoring the fact that the creative process is ongoing and that these four people inspire each other.

Wij, de kunstenaars! (part IV) can be visited free of charge in the Princenhaags Museum on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 pm.