THE CULTURAL HERITAGE FUND OF THE KING BAUDOUIN FOUNDATION Preserving Belgium s rich and diverse cultural heritage For 25 years, the Cultural Heritage Fund has been acquiring important Belgian works of art and historical documents in an effort to keep these works in Belgium, show them to a broader audience, and preserve them for future generations. The works are entrusted to well-known museums in every part of the country so the public may experience the richness of our cultural heritage in the best possible environment. Building upon a fascinating collection of over 7,000 works The Cultural Heritage Fund concentrates its purchasing efforts on masterpieces and works of major historical value that our museums do not have the resources to acquire. Some of its recent acquisitions are highlighted on the next few pages. To explore the full collection of its 7,000 works which illustrate the diversity of the country s rich artistic tradition, please visit www.heritage-kbf.be. Providing opportunities for donors in Belgium and the United States The Cultural Heritage Fund would not be able to carry out its ambitious mission without the financial support of generous donors in Belgium and the United States. In addition, the Fund receives an increasing number of artworks and collections from philanthropists who show a keen interest in protecting our heritage. Recent donations include the archives of Belgian novelist Georges Simenon, the Treasure of Hugo d Oignies, one of the seven wonders of Belgium; a collection of post-1945 abstract art; a silver basin and ewer that belonged to Rubens; a portrait by Evenepoel; and a 16 th century painting by Jan Mandyn.
Jan Van Delen, Charité, 1673-1678 Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2012) Entrusted to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels Will be returned to the Tour et Tassis funerary chapel in the Sablon Church, Brussels Charité is a unique work in white marble that was created in 1673-78 for the funerary chapel of the Counts of Tour et Tassis in the Sablon Church, a focal point of Brussels architecture and sculpture. Jan Van Delen had close links with Duquesnoy. His masterpiece was taken by French revolutionaries in 1794, and disappeared until its recent rediscovery in the entrance hall of a Paris building. The Cultural Heritage Fund was able to purchase it at Christie s in 2012, and will return it to its rightful place in the Sablon chapel. The Treasure of Hugo d Oignies, 13 th century Gift from the Sisters of Notre-Dame de Namur to the Cultural Heritage Fund (2010) Entrusted to the Musée provincial des Arts anciens, Namur The Treasure of Hugo d Oignies is one of the seven wonders of Belgium. It brings together some thirty pieces of 13 th century Mosan silverware, principally religious works. Most of the pieces are the work of an exceptional silversmith, Brother Hugo d Oignies. Whilst many other contemporary works were destroyed or dispersed by the hazard of wars, the Treasure was preserved almost in its entirety, thanks to the successive Priors of Oignies and the Sisters of Notre-Dame. The Foundation has now taken up this torch with gratitude. 2
The Bowet Book of Hours, Illuminated Manuscript on Vellum, 1410-1420 Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2014) Entrusted to the Groeninge Museum, Bruges The Bowet Book of Hours was made in Bruges around 1410-1420. Its realist style and innovative iconography provide an important link between painting in the pre- Eyckian period and the great revival of Flemish painting initiated by the van Eyck brothers, as well as announcing the break with the international mannerist style which was in vogue in Europe at that time. The production of manuscripts was a decisive element in the rise of Bruges towards the golden age it experienced under the Flemish primitive artists. Copy of Rubens Theoretical Notebook, 1600-1635 Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2012) Entrusted to the Rubens House, Antwerp The Cultural Heritage Fund recently acquired one of four known copies of an original manuscript created by Rubens between 1600 and 1635, but destroyed in the fire of Charles Boulle s studio in 1720. The notebook throws exceptional light on the theoretical artistic vision of the great Antwerp master, and demonstrates that he was not only a great artist, but also an outstanding scholar. It contains sketches, annotated drawings and texts in which he sets out his ideas relating to perspective, anatomy, proportions, symmetry and architecture. 3
Vendredi, 1949-1951 Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2012) - With the support of friends in the United States Will be entrusted to : To be determined Vendredi is one of the most singular surrealist magazines. Published between November 1949 and October 1951, it was conceived as a weekly liaison newsletter for a nephew of poet Paul Colinet who was living in the Belgian Congo at the time. Taken together, the one hundred single copy issues comprise some 900 pages with unique poems, caricatures and drawings by leading members of the Belgian surrealist movement. Leafing through the issues, one comes across contributions from Rene Magritte, Marcel Marien, Marcel Broodthaers, Pierre Alechinsky and Christian Dotremont. A Pipe to Commemorate the Battle of Waterloo, 1815-1832 Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2013) Entrusted to the Silver Museum Sterckshof, Antwerp This commemorative pipe, a rare example of Belgian miniature silverware, was made as a souvenir of the Battle of Waterloo (1815). It reproduces the Column of Peace, which was erected in 1817 to honor Lieutenant Colonel Sir Alexander Gordon, aide-de-camp to the Duke of Wellington. Gordon died from his wounds on the battlefield, at the age of 29. 4
Henri Evenepoel, Charles in a Striped Jersey, 1898 Gift from Anne and André Leysen to the Cultural Heritage Fund (2008) Will be entrusted to : To be determined The Brussels painter Henri Evenepoel is best known for his portraits of children. Charles in a striped jersey shows his own son, born of a secret liaison with his cousin, Louise Van Mattemburgh. Despite his premature death at the age of twentyseven, Evenepoel left an extraordinary heritage. He made a significant contribution to symbolism, of which this work is a remarkable example. Collection of Abstract Art Gift from Thomas Neirynck to the Cultural Heritage Fund (2004) Entrusted to BAM (Beaux-Arts Mons), Mons The Thomas Neirynck collection comprises almost seven hundred works by artists such as Bram van Velde, Michaux, Alechinsky, Jorn, Van Lint and Dotremont. Several of these artists were prominent participants in CoBrA, a European avant-garde movement active from 1949 to 1952. The CoBrA name was coined by Dotremont from the initials of the members' home cities: Copenhagen (Co), Brussels (Br), Amsterdam (A). 5
Wittock Collection, Rare Books, 16 th to 20 th century Gift from Michel Wittock to the Cultural Heritage Fund (2010) Entrusted to the Biblioteca Wittockiana, Brussels For over sixty years, Michel Wittock patiently collected masterpieces of bookbinding and assembled a collection of several thousand artistic bindings covering every period from the Renaissance to the present time. To showcase his collection, Wittock created the Bibliotheca Wittockiana, a private institution which, over time, became a centre and a museum of international repute. In 2010, he decided to donate the most representative part of his collection to the Cultural Heritage Fund, in an effort to perpetuate the work of the Wittockiana. Ensign of the Sacred Blood of Bruges, 15th century Acquired by the Cultural Heritage Fund (2007) Entrusted to the Museum of the Holy Blood, Bruges This magnificent 15 th century ensign, in polychrome wood, was placed on top of a pole and carried through the town of Bruges each May for the Procession of the Holy Blood. It disappeared at the end of the 18 th century and was thought to have been lost or destroyed forever. 6