Dutch astronaut André Kuipers joins children to launch Mission Masterpiece research challenge at the Rijksmuseum

Astronaut André Kuipers joined children at the Rijksmuseum today to launch Mission: Masterpiece. This summer the Rijksmuseum has transformed its temporary exhibition wing into a research lab. Children aged 8 and above – and their families – will get to carry out challenging missions here to find out what makes an artwork a masterpiece. With the press of a button and clouds of confetti, André Kuipers and the children today launched Mission: Masterpiece. From this Saturday until 3 September, inquisitive visitors will be able to come here to investigate six real artworks. The young investigators will get to use the same methods and techniques as the Rijksmuseum’s own professional restorers and scientists. Wearing a real lab coat, they’ll examine fabric fibres, watermarks and pigments, using microscopes, UV light and X-rays – to work out whether each artwork is a real masterpiece.

The Mission: Masterpiece project is a partnership between the Rijksmuseum, NEMO Science Museum and a panel of ten children.