Thanks to a unique collaboration with the Yale Center for British Art in New Haven, USA, Dordrechts Museum is exhibiting ten works by Joseph Mallord William Turner. The works are from the renowned Paul Mellon Collection, a collection that has never before been on display in the Netherlands.
Water & Light
The exhibition presents Turner as the ultimate painter of water. The interplay of water and light was an inexhaustible source of artistic inspiration for Turner. He captured the beauty of picturesque rivers and confronts us with the immense power and dangers of the turbulent sea. As a painter of modern life during the Industrial Revolution, Turner captured both the beauty and potential, as well as the dangers, of water – water as both friend and foe.
Nicky Assmann
Turner forms the first part of the diptych Water & Light. The second part brings the story to the present day with artist Nicky Assmann (1980). She, too, depicts both the beauty and the menace of nature. Assmann creates dynamic light installations that evoke the interplay of colors of the elements by zooming in on water reflections and the glow of the sun.
A unique experience
The exhibition shows how artists throughout the centuries have remained fascinated by the elements of water and light. What took shape in the 17th century through Aelbert Cuyp and other Dutch painters continues in this diptych exhibition, from Turner to the contemporary work of Nicky Assmann. The combination of historical masterpieces, rare Turner paintings and groundbreaking contemporary art makes this exhibition a unique experience.
Untill 14 June 2026
dordrechtsmuseum.nl