Publication date: 08 March 2023 - 08:00

CHANEL is partnering with the Women of the Rijksmuseum research project, to raise the visibility of women in the Rijksmuseum’s collection and presentations. The new partnership with CHANEL will enable the Rijksmuseum to appoint additional researchers, making women's stories more visible. CHANEL will additionally support an annual symposium at the museum as well as acquisitions of work by female artists. 

Thanks to CHANEL we are a step closer to what we want to achieve through Women of the Rijksmuseum: the permanent embedding of women's stories in the past, the present and the future. We are deeply grateful to CHANEL for the partnership.

Hendrikje Crebolder, directeur Development & Media, Rijksmuseum

CHANEL is thrilled to partner on the Women of the Rijksmuseum research project, to raise the inclusion of women in the celebrated museum's permanent collection and visibility in future exhibitions. Painting women back into the picture is very important for CHANEL, as a House committed- since its founding - to the empowerment of women in art and life. Our multi-year partnership with the Rijksmuseum will spotlight women's stories, increase representation for women in the arts and drive research on related topics throughout the museum, advancing the positive impact that gender equality brings to the world.

Yana Peel, Global Head of Arts & Culture, CHANEL

The Rijksmuseum launched the Women of the Rijksmuseum research project on 8 March 2022. Its aim is to embed a female narrative in the Rijksmuseum’s collection and displays, to offer a more complete historical picture. The multi-disciplinary project team identifies and investigates female narratives in the Rijksmuseum collection, acquires new work, and creates exhibitions focusing on women's stories. 

Since its inception in March 2022, the project has seen the appointment of two researchers, the addition of 17 paintings and three sculptures by female artists to the permanent collection, and the staging of three exhibitions and presentations: Barbara Hepworth in the Rijksmuseum Gardens, Women on Paper comprising 70 highlights from the Rijksmuseum print room (running till 30 May 2023) and Irma Boom: Art and Books (running till 7 May 2023). The Rijksmuseum also initiated an annual Women in the Museum symposium to mark International Women's Day.

New in the Rijksmuseum
 The Rijksmuseum recently received Pietje – Girl Reading (c. 1898) by Suze Robertson on a long-term loan from a private collection, and acquired Photogram of Leaves of a Tree (c. 1900-1910) by Bertha Evelyn Jaques through the support of Baker McKenzie, and Landscape with a Coalpit near Commentry (1861) by George Sand through the support of the Otto van Noppen Fund / Rijksmuseum Fund. The latest edition of The Rijksmuseum Bulletin, the Rijksmuseum's academic journal, is devoted entirely to women in the collection. 

Vital support
The Rijksmuseum is grateful for all the forms of support it receives. Government funding, contributions from the business sector and funding organisations, gifts, bequests and Friends are all vital to the Rijksmuseum.

The Women of the Rijksmuseum research project is made possible in part by the Susi Zijderveld Fonds, the Familie Krouwels Fonds, the Machteld Vos & Willem Sijthoff Fonds, the Heleen Dura- van Oord Fonds, the Kind Courage Monique Maarsen Fonds and the ‘Vrouwen van het Rijksmuseum’ Fonds (‘Women of the Rijksmuseum’ Fund).

CHANEL
CHANEL is a private company and a world leader in creating, developing, manufacturing and distributing luxury products. Founded by Gabrielle Chanel at the beginning of the last century, CHANEL offers a broad range of high-end creations, including Ready-to-Wear, Leather Goods, Fashion Accessories, Eyewear, Fragrances, Makeup, Skincare, Jewellery and Watches. CHANEL is also renowned for its Haute Couture collections, presented twice yearly in Paris, and for having acquired a large number of specialised suppliers, collectively known as the Métiers d'Art. CHANEL is dedicated to ultimate luxury and the highest level of craftsmanship. It is a brand whose core values remain historically grounded on exceptional creation. As such, CHANEL promotes culture, art, creativity and "savoir-faire" worldwide and invests significantly in people, R&D and innovation. At the end of 2020, CHANEL employed more than 27,000 people worldwide.