Projects Gallery: Wouter van Riessen

Wouter van Riessen (1967) is a multitalented artist who paints, draws, photographs, collaborates in stage productions and makes music. His main product is self-portraits, in which he sometimes depicts himself together with familiar icons of childhood such as Pinocchio or Bert and Ernie (characters from the Dutch version of Sesame Street). His drawings and paintings are constructed of clear stylised lines which give them an almost childlike air. This, however, proves to be deceptive.

From 14 December, Van Riessen will be given free run of the Projects Gallery - a space used to give contemporary artists the opportunity to respond to the Berlage building, the Gemeentemuseum's collections and art in general. Van Riessen follows in the footsteps of artists like Günther Tuzina, Jürgen Partenheimer and Daan van Golden. The projects are more than a retrospective or a presentation of recent work - the artist is given a completely free hand to make an artistic statement without the intervention of a museum curator.