The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam has unveiled plans for a new public sculpture garden thanks to a €60 million donation.
The sculpture garden will be a green space with three pavilions, home to sculptures by artists such as Alberto Giacometti, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Jean Arp, Roni Horn and Henry Moore.
Named the Don Quixote Pavilion and Garden, the museum's outdoor space will also host temporary sculpture exhibitions. It will be free to visit.
The Don Quixote Foundation is donating €60m to fund the development of the new site, and is loaning a large number of sculptures to the Rijksmuseum.
Taco Dibbits, general director of the Rijksmuseum, said: "This is a donation of historic significance, and a historic moment for the Rijksmuseum. It will give modern sculpture the visibility it deserves.
"It also marks an unprecedented enhancement of the Rijksmuseum’s collection of 20th-century art."
Increasing biodiversity in Amsterdam
The garden will be designed by Belgian landscape architect Piet Blanckaert, and the pavilions will be transformed into sculpture exhibition spaces by Foster + Partners.
As well as sculptures, the garden will feature 22 new mature trees and a wider variety of native flowers and plants, increasing biodiversity in the city.
Femke Halsema, Amsterdam's mayor, said: "This is a wonderful gift for everyone in Amsterdam. Local residents, city dwellers and art lovers will soon be enjoying the tranquil natural surroundings and artistic beauty.”
The permit application has been submitted, with the Rijksmuseum expecting to open the sculpture garden in autumn of this year.
In December, the Rijksmuseum announced plans for a new branch in Eindhoven in the southern Netherlands.
Situated in a new park on the banks of the Dommel River, the new museum will display artworks from the iconic Rijksmuseum collection.
"The Rijksmuseum in Eindhoven represents an important step in making the collection even more accessible in the south of the country," said Dibbits.
Images courtesy of the Rijksmuseum
