Dr. Charl Landvreugd (1971) joins the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam as Head of Research & Curatorial Practice on October the 1st. He will guide research programmes museum-wide and catalyse the Stedelijk’s aim of broadening its programme and collection and enhancing its accessibility. Landvreugd will draw on his background as an artist and researcher with a special focus on Curatorial Practice to reflect on presentations and the new direction of the Stedelijk.

C& spoke to Charl Landvreugd about his new appointment:

“I will approach the position as Head of Research from an artistic research perspective. As far as I know that has not been done yet in the context of a Museum. Artists are being invited to do artistic research, but usually just in the frame of a project and not as part of the structure. For me this is very exciting  because I’ve been doing artistic research since I started doing art. This is how I was trained at Goldsmiths. All these years, everybody was asking me what it is that I do, making art or theory? Bur for me, there is and was no either or, it’s the same thing. To make the decision as a director to put practitioners into executive positions is going to change the way the museum operates. Maybe that might have an impact on other museums in the future too.”

Landvreugd, who was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, and grew up in Rotterdam, is an artist, researcher and exhibition maker. He uses the results of his research to think about migration history, culture and power relations and ways of expressing cultural citizenship and belonging within the world of the visual arts.

As an artist, Landvreugd’s oeuvre largely comprises installation, sculpture and video. He is the recipient of various fellowships and bursaries for his research and visual practice, and has exhibited his work in the Netherlands and internationally. For his PhD dissertation at the Royal College of Art in London he investigated strategies that ask whether art created by artists with an immigrant background can be recognised as an original part of Dutch visual culture. Landvreugd holds a BA in Fine Art/History of Art (joint honours) from Goldsmiths University, London and an MA in Modern Art: Critical and Curatorial Studies from Columbia University, New York.

Landvreugd’s writings have been widely published in journals such as Small Axe, ARC Magazine and Open Arts Journal. He is also an educator, lecturer, and participant in debates. He is a member of the Supervisory Board of the Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst and the board of the Akademie van Kunsten (Dutch Society of the Arts) (and also a member). He is also the Pathway Leader of the MA Visual Arts & Post Contemporary Practices at the St. Joost School for Art & Design in Den Bosch. Recent posts include: advisor to the Raad voor Cultuur (Dutch Council for Culture), the Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst and CBK Zuidoost.

Director Rein Wolfs: “I am delighted with the appointment of Charl Landvreugd. Charl will bring his unique experience to bear on research projects, not only approaching them from an art historical or academic perspective but also from the perspective of an artist and exhibition maker. Which is invaluable. I’m looking forward to working with Charl to refresh our research programme with new themes that support the Stedelijk’s aim of broadening its engagement.”