It is not a daily activity for the municipality, but the art sale of Meierijstad was a great success on Saturday. “Of the 250 works for sale, at least 150 have been sold,” says Marike de Kroon, who manages the art collection of the merged municipality.
The empty industrial factory hall on the Noordkade in Veghel is the perfect atmospheric location to view works of art. And you could also buy this on Saturday morning.
Maikel van der Aalst beamed next to his purchase, a painting by Jan Heesters, a local master from Schijndel. “I wanted this, yes,” he smiles with satisfaction. “It is also commercially interesting, because there are many collectors who are interested in this,” says the art dealer.
Gijs van Alebeek also bought a painting. He is happy with a young Wilhelmina with a heavy frame. Probably one of the largest works in the hall. “I like antiques and this feels antique. The painting is from 1922 and it wasn’t cheap, but something beautiful is always expensive.”
For example, many residents of Meierijstad will find something to their liking. “But you had to be there early to get that gem,” says Marike de Kroon. She is one of those who was allowed to decide which art would be sold. “This is all municipal art,” she explains, “because Meierijstad is a merged municipality, we have a large amount of art while the place to keep it has become smaller.”
As a result, residents of the new municipality are lucky, because they were the first to choose this Saturday to buy a work of art.
There was great interest: “Of the 250 works that were offered for sale, at least 150 have already been sold,” says De Kroon halfway through the afternoon. The fact that its own inhabitants are the first to buy a painting is well received by visitors.
“It was purchased with tax money from the residents, so it is good that we can choose first,” says Emma Fitzgerald. She comes from the area and has bought a sleek painting with blue lines and a yellow frame from the painter Buurman.
“The fact that the municipality sells these works of art certainly does not mean that they are cast-offs,” emphasizes De Kroon. “We have set new criteria for our art collection, with works by local artists. These are works that we feel no longer fit in the collection and unfortunately we have to say goodbye to them due to lack of space.”
Meanwhile, Marjon van Hek continues to sniff. “I’ve already seen a few beautiful things. Not everything, but I think that’s something with art. Not everyone wants to have the same thing hanging at home.” She doesn’t know yet whether she will actually buy anything. “I left home a little late, maybe too late.”
But Annie van Genugten has found a nice job. “It is a gift for someone. I had read that they were going to sell these works and I do model drawing myself, so I had to come and have a look. There are also beautiful other works, but you should be able to hang it at home of course. “
