More than 200 Years of Kunstliefde
The Kunstliefde Society is an Utrecht-based artists’ association that has played an important role in the city’s cultural life since 1807. Its long history is also reflected in Collectie Centraal: many artists associated with Kunstliefde feature in its paintings, posters, portraits and cityscapes. The publication of the new Lexicon of Artist Members of the Kunstliefde Society brings this intertwined history even more vividly to life.
A Shared History
The relationship between Kunstliefde and the Centraal Museum goes back a long way. In 1807, artists in Utrecht founded a modern drawing society, later known as Genootschap Kunstliefde. It was a place where professional artists and amateurs could hone their skills, exhibit their work and discuss art with one another.
During the same period, various initiatives emerged in Utrecht to make art and heritage accessible to a wider audience. These developments eventually led to the establishment of the Centraal Museum in 1838 as Utrecht’s municipal museum. Both institutions shared a similar ambition: to collect, exhibit and promote art. Kunstliefde pursued this aim through the artists’ society itself, organising exhibitions and building its own art collection, among other activities.
For Art, 1902. Portrait exhibition. Pictured: Joh. A. Moesman and Wijtman
In 1873, Kunstliefde opened a museum of its own. When the museum ceased to exist in the twentieth century, a significant part of its collection eventually found its way to the Centraal Museum. Many Utrecht artists whose work is now represented in the Centraal Museum’s collection, including Dick Bruna, were once members of Kunstliefde. Their work tells not only the stories of individual artists, but also that of a society that has played an important role in Utrecht’s art scene for more than two hundred years.
Today, Kunstliefde is based on Nobelstraat, where it continues to bring artists and the public together.
Discover Kunstliefde in Collectie Centraal
To mark the publication of the Lexicon Kunstliefde, in Collectie Centraal we are shining a special spotlight on artists who are or were affiliated with the Utrecht society.
Among other things, you can see the poster that Toon van Ham designed around 1943 to draw attention to the Centraal Museum.
Posters Dick Bruna designed for Kunstliefde are on display in his studio, including the colorful design he created for the society’s 150th anniversary in 1957.
Artists such as Margaretha Cornelia Boellaard, Otto van Rees and Erika Visser are also featured, illustrating the profound influence Kunstliefde has had—and continues to have—on Utrecht’s art scene. The collection display also includes additional works by Surrealists associated with Kunstliefde, including Willem van Leusden and Gerrit van ’t Net.
In Collectie Centraal, these artworks are marked with the label ‘Member of the Kunstliefde Society’.
Highlights
A monumental reference work
On 21 June 2026, the first copy of the three-volume lexicon compiled by Jaap Röell was presented at the Centraal Museum. Röell served as chair of Kunstliefde from 2006 to 2012 and worked on this extensive project for around twelve years. The result is a richly detailed reference work on visual artists who were associated with Kunstliefde between 1807 and 2007.
The lexicon brings together hundreds of artists, from major names to artists who remained out of the spotlight for many years. This makes it not only a book about Kunstliefde, but also a new resource for the history of Utrecht’s art scene. The publication reveals just how many stories, networks and works of art lie behind a single artists’ association. Over the coming years, the information will be expanded and refined, with the ultimate aim of incorporating the lexicon into the digital records of the RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History.
A richer perspective on the collection
The new lexicon highlights the strong ties between Kunstliefde, the Centraal Museum and Utrecht-based artists. For the museum, it is a valuable addition to existing knowledge: it brings together names, works and stories, fills in gaps and opens the door to artists who are still relatively unknown.
Toon van Ham, Composition for an advertisement for the Centraal Museum, depicting St. Christopher wading through the Oudegracht, c. 1943.
