New exhibitions in the Art Depot and Aad de Haas gallery
21 Oct 2025
Ahead of the opening of Rooted in Change, several presentations are already on view at SCHUNCK Museum. In the Aad de Haas gallery, you can see Aad de Haas: Castle Strijthagen. In the Art Depot, there is The selection of Janna Navis and in an adjacent space The SCHUNCK collection: an impression. Together, these form the first chapters of Rooted in Change.
Aad de Haas: Castle Strijthagen
Discover the work and life of Aad de Haas (1920, Rotterdam – 1972, Schaesberg), who lived and worked at Castle Strijthagen in the Limburg mining region. The exhibition features works created there, showcasing visible shifts in his style, as well as pieces from the former Staatsmijnen collection, now part of the Aad de Haas Collection at SCHUNCK following the donation by dsm-firmenich. You can also see photographs of the castle’s interior and exterior, along with some of his later, more erotic paintings, offering an intimate glimpse into his final years.
Wandkleed kasteel Strijthagen, Nel de Haas naar ontwerp Aad de Haas, bruikleen particuliere collectie
The selection of Janna Navis
In the Art Depot, Janna Navis, coordinator of the SCHUNCK Library’s book collection and visual artist, presents her favorite works from the SCHUNCK art collection. Driven by curiosity about what could be discovered in the depot, she came across the original of a photograph from Charlotte Dumas’ Retrieved: a series portraying fifteen dogs ten years after 9/11, who had assisted in the rescue efforts at the time. “Art in which the artist does not place themselves at the center, but what is present in the environment – in this case, dogs,” Navis explains.
Charlotte Dumas, Moxie Winthrop MA, 2011, C-print, 30 x 40 cm, collectie SCHUNCK, gemeente Heerlen. Fotografie: Peter Cox, Eindhoven.
The SCHUNCK Collection: An Impression
In the other rooms of the Art Depot, you can explore the story behind the SCHUNCK Collection: a collection driven by innovation, just like the city of Heerlen itself. In the 1950s, the municipality decided to establish a public art collection with its own regional signature. Works by the so-called Amsterdam Limburgers — Pieter Defesche, Lei Molin, and Frans Nols — form the foundation. The focus on regional artists remains visible in later acquisitions, including Hadassah Emmerich, Romy Finke, Joost van Haaften, Dean Kisters, Rik Meijers, and Aline Thomassen.
Thomas Raat Fotoshoot, 2004, c/o Pictoright Amsterdam. Plakplastic en tape op papier. 150 x 183 cm. Collectie SCHUNCK, gemeente Heerlen. Verworven met steun van het Mondriaan Fonds. Fotografie: Peter Cox, Eindhoven