Iratxe Jaio + Klaas van Gorkum

A famous painting hangs in the town hall in Breda, just outside the wedding rooms. It can be seen in the background of hundreds of photos that are taken right after the marriage ceremonies.

The artists Iratxe Jaio and Klaas van Gorkum have called on the residents of Breda to search through their albums for such photos and to submit them for a large, joint exhibition. The result of the many submissions can be seen in Nieuwe Veste during the Breda Month of History.

On October 4, the artists Jaio and Van Gorkum will give a lecture in the Stedelijk Museum Breda. They will talk about their project that they are carrying out at the invitation of Witte Rook, in which they go in search of the backgrounds of the copies of the painting by Velázquez. The lecture in the auditorium is accessible with a ticket for the museum. Monique Rakhorst, curator of old art at the museum, will be present at the lecture to provide a historical perspective on the painting.

October 1 - November 24, 2024:
- Exhibition in the Nieuwe Veste, Molenstraat 6, 4811 GS Breda.
October 4 3:00 PM:
- Lecture by Iratxe Jaio and Klaas van Gorkum in the Stedelijk Museum Breda
October 11 7:00 PM:
- Opening in the Nieuwe Veste

We are honoured to announce our participation in Ten Thousand Suns, the 24th edition of the Biennale of Sydney, curated by Inti Guerrero and Cosmin Costinas. The Biennale has commissioned us to produce a new series of sculptures for the installation False Flag.

These sculptures are inspired by the surrealistic warplanes painted by René Magritte in 1937, when he learned of the Nazi bombardement of the Basque town Guernica. They will be displayed together with a video in which the mountains surrounding Guernica play the main role. Read more about this project here.

The contemporary art platform Witte Rook, together with the Stedelijk Museum Breda, invites the artistic couple formed by Iratxe Jaio and Klaas van Gorkum to investigate the vestiges of the shared history between Holland and Spain.

Their project takes as starting point three copies of the painting “Las Lanzas” by Diego Velázquez: one made by Kees Maks in 1903, another by Frans Hogerwaard in 1912 and the third one, painted by Fernando Coll in 1931.

Although at first glance the images they represent are very similar to each other, they fulfill very different functions. By focusing on these differences, the artists hope to shed light on the fluidity of these images and the different, sometimes contradictory, narratives they support.

Come and celebrate the opening of GRAW23 at our studio complex Ackersdijkstraat 20, on Friday the 15th of September 2023 between 17:00-21:00!

With concerts, performances, food and drinks, we kick off a festive weekend in which over 800 artists from Rotterdam will open their studios to the public. See the following link for the opening party program: https://www.grootrotterdamsatelierweekend.nl/special/feestelijke-opening...

On the following days, Saturday the 16th and Sunday the 17th, we would also love to show you around in our newly renovated studio, and introduce you to "Das Russendenkmal" - a series of watercolor paintings created in the Swiss Alps this summer.