A quest for inspiration

In the ancient world, it was like catching a divine spark, a gift from the gods or a little whisper from an angel, guiding your creativity.

Or is it much more down-to-earth after all? That exceptionally good film, a dazzling dress, or a seductive look in someone's eyes. They can all lead to exciting new ideas.

For over 200 years, the Mauritshuis has been a place full of colorful stories. But even beyond the Mauritshuis, our collection serves as a wellspring of inspiration for creators.

Notable Dutch artists like San Holo, Jett Rebel, Dio, Willie Wartaal, Merol, and The Kik each chose a masterpiece from our collection to craft entirely original music. The outcome is a playlist that invites you to see (and hear!) our iconic artworks from a brand new perspective. And in 2024, we'll keep on adding new artists to continue this creative journey.

Discover the full playlist on Spotify.

View the Mauritshuis with Your Ears is made possible with the support of NN Group.

For the exhibition FLASH | BACK sixteen prominent photographer produced new work based on our paintings. 

Carla van de Puttelaar's work typically places the woman front and center. However, she found her inspiration in a painting where Jesus is the main subject: Christ therefore became Christina, and in this beautiful photo, she is surrounded by the three Marys, who in Rogier van der Weyden's work are on the sidelines.

It's not only professional artists that find their inspiration at the Mauritshuis. Natuurlijk zijn het niet alleen professionals die hun inspiratie vinden in het Mauritshuis. When the real Girl was temporarily on display in Amsterdam in 2023, we received thousands of submissions to temporarily take her place with the project My Girl with a Pearl.

Have you created your own version of Girl with a Pearl Earring? Share your artwork on Instagram or TikTok with the hashtag #mygirlwithapearl.

Particularly moving was the story of Sjaan Hermans-van Leest. She discovered the pleasure of painting while residing in a care home. At the age of 90, her grandchildren submitted her interpretation of Girl with a Pearl Earring. Omroep Zeeland produced this splendid video, in which she candidly shares her artistic experiences.

Sadly, Sjaan passed away this summer, but her passion for painting will continue to inspire people for a long time.

During the lockdowns in 2021, Vincent Kamp painted his series After Hours, with The Shaving Lesson as the central piece, inspired by The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp.

Invited into an empty museum, he had the exclusive chance to explore our two Rembrandt rooms all by himself.

Big, bigger, biggest: The Mauritshuis Murals project resulted in several gigantic artworks scattered throughout The Hague. Nina Valkhoff, GLEO, Julien de Casabianca, Nadia van Luijk, Super A, and Collin van der Sluijs each selected a piece from our collection. We visited Nina while she was busy creating her mural inspired by The Garden of Eden with the Fall of Man by Jan Brueghel the Elder & Peter Paul Rubens.

In honor of the 200th anniversary of the Mauritshuis, we published the book Pen meets paint with contributions from 200 prominent authors from around the world. Author Reggie Baay wrote a moving piece about Rembrandt's Two African Men.

Two-time world champion breakdancer Menno van Gorp was the director of our museum for one evening during Maurits& in 2019. For that occasion, he developed a dance based on a beautiful bouquet of flowers by de Heem. Discover here how Menno transforms paint splatters into spectacular dance movements.

View the Mauritshuis with Your Ears is made possible by NN Group.

FLASH | BACK is sponsored by Nationale-Nederlanden, Dutch Masters Foundation and the Mondrian Fund.

My Girl with a Pearl is supported by Nationale Nederlanden.

The interview with Sjaan was produced by Omroep Zeeland.

Mauritshuis Murals is a project in collaboration with The Hague Street Art, Gemeente Den Haag, Nationale-Nederlanden and Stichting Droom en Daad.

Maurits& is made possible by NN Group.