The third Mauritshuis Mural is complete! Artist Nadia van Luijk participated in our competition, and managed to win over both the expert jury and residents of the Transvaalkwartier with her tasteful design.
Nadia took her inspiration for the mural on Joubertplantsoen from the painting Vase of Flowers by Jan Davidsz de Heem in the Mauritshuis collection. The design is very much in her own style, however, and in keeping with the feel of the neighbourhood.
"The spray can is a homage to street art as an art form. The water and the roots symbolise the source of all cultures. The ingredients and tasty treats exploding forth refer to all the different culinary traditions you find in the Transvaalkwartier, on the Hague Market and in the local shops."
Nadia also came up with a very appropriate title for the new mural: Taste My Culture.
Jan Davidsz de Heem
Nadia's mural Taste My Culture is based on Vase of Flowers by Jan Davidsz de Heem in the Mauritshuis collection. Compared with the floral still lifes of the early 17th century, this painting is a real explosion of flowers. No stiff bouquet here, but a multicoloured profusion of flowers hanging over the edge of the vase.
The dark background brings out the fresh colours of the flowers, just as in Nadia’s mural.
Nadia van Luijk
Nadia works as a painter, sculptor and graphic designer. Her creations are both realistic and surrealistic. She herself describes her work as “artistic mindfucks that reset and refresh your brain". She makes us look at the world around us in a different way.
Nadia draws inspiration from nature, culture and… food! She believes that food is the best way to explore and understand the world. Looking at her mural, you can clearly see what inspires her.
The Transvaal neighbourhood
Nadia made this Mauritshuis Mural on a wall on Joubertplantsoen in the Transvaalkwartier neighbourhood. The Hague’s famous market is in this neighbourhood, and typifies its distinctive lively atmosphere, featuring businesses ranging from clothes shops with colourful window displays to bakeries whose delicious smells entice you in as you walk down the street. On every street corner there is a small shop that serves a faithful band of regular local customers.
And this small square by the Joubertplantsoen public gardens is no exception. It is the centre of a community that lives in several surrounding apartment buildings. It could almost be regarded as a kind of modern ‘courtyard’. When the weather is fine, the square is always buzzing with children playing, young people enjoying a game of basketball on the court, and people sitting chatting on the benches. The wall with the mural is clearly visible from the square, so many local people will pass it every day, or see it from the square.
