Donors, friends and guests with a privilege pass may book a single or multiple time slots here
Donors, friends and guests with a privilege pass may book a single or multiple time slots here
Would you also like to experience more Boijmans or give a friendship as a gift? Join as a Friend and get invited for the annual Museumpark Vriendendag. Will we see you or your friend in the depot soon?
This timeline shows the development of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen from 1849 to the present day. It also gives an insight into the renovation and expansion of the museum buildings, which have been closed since 2019, and the vision of the future museum.
1849 - 1935
Museum Boymans opens in 1849 in the 17th-century Schielandshuis on the Korte Hoogstraat. A large part of the collection is destroyed in a fire in 1864. The building is restored and given a glass roof. After the reopening in 1867, the collection grows through purchases and gifts. In 1924, the museum acquires an annex on the square at the rear of the Schielandshuis: the Temporary Museum of Modern Art.
1935 - present
In 1935 the museum moves to a new building commissioned by the municipality in what is now the Museum Park. The brick building with its characteristic tower is designed by city architect, Ad van der Steur. The galleries provide hanging space for the entire collection. An extensive garden is laid out behind the museum.
1943 - 1963
Several years after the opening, there are new plans. In 1943, Van der Steur sketches an enormous expansion in the museum’s garden and towards the Westersingel. The expansion is also to house collection of the Museum of Antiquities (now Museum Rotterdam). After the war, Van der Steur and his successor Alexander Bodon make various designs for the extension of the south wing in the museum garden and for building over the courtyard. Ultimately, Bodon focuses on a major expansion towards the Westersingel.
1972 - present
The first expansion is realised in 1972: a new wing by architect Alexander Bodon. The large, light-filled and flexible galleries are ideal for exhibiting contemporary art. The envisioned second phase of this wing (an extension to the Westersingel) is not realised.
1991 - 1998 and 1991 - present
In 1991, the museum gains a new entrance with a shop and restaurant at the front of the Bodon wing. Simultaneously a transparent pavilion is constructed at the rear of the Van der Steur building with basement galleries to house the Van Beuningen-de Vriese collection. The ground-floor space initially serves as an exhibition space for the decorative arts and design department but later becomes the museum’s restaurant. Both extensions are designed by architect Hubert-Jan Henket.
2003 - present
In 2003, a new extension is added, designed by the Belgian architects Paul Robbrecht and Hilde Daem. The Bodon Wing is wrapped on three sides by a succession of new galleries, workshops and offices. At the front, the new building extends to the Westersingel. Henket’s 1991 entrance building is demolished.
In 2019, the museum closes for a large-scale renovation: it is no longer safe for visitors and for the artworks, which are moved into storage pending the opening of the new Depot. To improve the situation, all asbestos is removed from the building before the outdated electrical and air-conditioning installations can be replaced. In December 2021, Rotterdam City Council approved the definitive renovation plan for Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen. The decision gives the green light for many of the envisioned improvements, while leaving the door open for the future realisation of the most ambitious version of the plan. The costs are higher than for a basic renovation, but lower than for the most ambitious scenario. The plan will deliver a future-proof museum that is expected to open in 2029.
2020 - 2021
Following a selection procedure, three teams develop a vision for the renovation and modernisation of the museum: KAAN Architecten with Van Hoogevest Architecten, David Chipperfield Architects with WDJ Architecten, and Mecanoo. At the beginning of 2020, the city commissions Mecanoo to develop their vision into a design. Following a period of intensive discussions between the museum, the Municipality of Rotterdam and the architecture firm Mecanoo, it is now up to Francine Houben and her team to make a preliminary plan to renovate, restore and ensure the sustainability of the existing building and the associated outdoor spaces.
