All or Nothing: Collection Jurriaan van den Berg

Jurriaan van den Berg (1943-2016) built up his collection with the utmost care. He closely followed the development of a number of artists and collected early and recent work so he could visualise the artists’ development from his own collection. All of this was documented meticulously. Every single piece of jewellery was accompanied by a card bearing the object’s details, price and date of purchase. He was also in close contact with jewellery designers, museums and galleries, which means that a lot of documentation and correspondence was preserved. This material does not only consist of factual information; it resonates with the collector’s voice and reflects his view on jewellery design and on collecting and presenting jewellery.  
 
Although Van den Berg was well-known within jewellery circles, no one knew the exact range of his collection. Recent research shows that the entire collection must have consisted of over 600 objects before the donation to Museum Arnhem. Thanks to a generous loan by the Van den Berg family, CODA was able to make a selection from the entire collection for Alles of Niets. Hence the exhibition beautifully conveys the collector’s passion, and focusses on his approach, vision and role within the jewellery scene. Alles of Niets also posthumously fulfils Van den Berg’s wish of realising a museological presentation.


Donation
In 2008 and 2009, Jurriaan van den Berg donated 250 pieces of jewellery to Museum Arnhem. He felt that the development of a number of artists could not be shown from the museum’s collection because one or several important works were lacking. With this in mind, he made a selection that complemented and deepened the collection of Museum Arnhem in some important areas.
 
The donation to Museum Arnhem came with a personal note in which Van den Berg urged that the jewellery be worn, and the experience recorded. From this incitement sprang the school project Siermakers, a collaboration between Museum Arnhem, Quadraam and CODA. Ten pieces of jewellery from Van den Berg’s collection toured a number of schools. The pupils were given the opportunity to study, touch and wear the objects. Based on this experience, they made their own jewellery. A number of the adornments made by the pupils are displayed in CODA Museum. 


Museum Arnhem in CODA Museum Apeldoorn
Museum Arnhem has been closed for renovation since December 2017, which led CODA Museum to open its doors for Museum Arnhem. Previously, the museums jointly appointed a jewellery curator. The exhibition Alles of Niets ties in with this collaboration and Museum Arnhem’s intention of exhibiting its collection in an outside Arnhem during the closure.

With over 9000 objects, CODA owns the largest museological jewellery collection in the Netherlands. This collection grows steadily through acquisitions, loans, donations and legacies. CODA presents the jewellery collection in anthologies and themed exhibitions. The jewellery collection of Museum Arnhem consists of more than 900 objects and is characterised by an interest in innovative development within Dutch jewellery design. The focus is on new materials, concept and technique. Museum Arnhem presents the jewellery collection in themed exhibitions and retrospectives.

Artist list
Nicolaas Thuys, Nicolaas van Beek, Françoise van den Bosch, Gijs Bakker, Emmy van Leersum, Lous Martin, Marion Herbst, Hans Appenzeller, Henk den Leeuw den Bouter, Frans van Nieuwenborg and Martijn Wegman, Melanie Oudemans, Charlotte van der Waals, Ad van Strien, Janke Ijff, Onno Boekhoudt, Antoinette Vroom, Maria Hees, Paul Derrez, Joke Brakman, Claudie Berbée, Mecky van den Brink, LAM de Wolf, Willem Honing, Annelies Planteydt, Herman Hermsen, Maria Blaisse, Martha de Wit, Richard Walraven, Beppe Kessler, Philip Sajet, Ruudt Peters, Nel Linssen, Marijke Schurink, Bernard Laméris, Carine Wintermans, Peggy Bannenberg, Daniëlle Koninkx, Pierre Degen, Ted Noten, Terhi Tolvanen, Caroline Broadhead, Susanna Heron, Veronika Schwarzinger, Marjorie Schick, Otto Künzli, Iris Bodemer, Stephanie Jendis, Ute Eitzenhöfer and Johanna Hess-Dahm.