New works in collections of SCHUNCK and Stedelijk Museum Schiedam
SCHUNCK and the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam are expanding their joint collection with three impressive works by Rinella Alfonso: Four braids to 5 suns (2024), Broken comb lays to rest (2024), and Four daggers facing the snake (2024). The acquisition was made possible with support from the Mondriaan Fund and is part of the ongoing collaboration between the two museums.
On the other side of the ocean
The three new works will be on view at SCHUNCK Glaspaleis from 20 May to 14 September 2025, as part of the exhibition Rinella Alfonso & Charles Eyck: On the other side of the ocean. In this exhibition, Alfonso’s paintings enter into dialogue with the work Charles Eyck created during his stay in Curaçao in 1952–1953.
With bold colours and symbolic compositions, Rinella Alfonso paints everyday objects and animals — a comb, a snake, a braid, a knife. Seemingly small elements that, in her work, become carriers of personal and collective stories about Curaçao — about family, rituals, and traditions. Her paintings evoke the sense that memories are resurfacing from deep within, sometimes painful, always powerful.
Rinella Alfonso, Broken Comb Lays to Rest, 2024, olieverf op canvas, 160 x 150 cm, Collectie SCHUNCK, gemeente Heerlen. Foto: Gert Jan van Rooij
Collaborating for Regional Visibility
The acquisition of the three paintings aligns with SCHUNCK’s broader ambition to increase the visibility of contemporary art in the region through collaboration with other institutions. As part of the ArtBase programme - a three-year pilot initiated by the Mondriaan Fund - SCHUNCK works closely with the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam and ArtBase Terneuzen. Joint acquisitions, such as that of Rinella Alfonso’s works, not only strengthen the collection but also promote the exchange of art and audiences between museums.
Rinella Alfonso
Rinella Alfonso (1995) was born in Curaçao and lives in Amsterdam. She completed a preparatory art programme at Instituto Buena Bista (IBB) in Willemstad, studied at the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) in The Hague, and completed a residency at De Ateliers in Amsterdam. In 2021, she was awarded the Royal Award for Modern Painting.