Theo van Doesberg Collection
The Centraal Museum has had Theo van Doesburg’s collection on permanent loan since 1999.
Theo van Doesburg was born Christian Emil Marie Küpper on 30 August 1883. At an early age, he adopted the surname of his stepfather and true guardian, Theodorus Doesburg, later adding ‘van’. Van Doesburg was an art critic, painter, poet, Dada performer, and founder of De Stijl. In 1920, he met Nelly van Moorsel, a gifted pianist who performed avant-garde compositions at Dada evenings. Van Doesburg and Van Moorsel became inseparable. After Van Doesburg’s death in 1931, Nelly devoted herself to promoting De Stijl and her husband’s work. Nelly died in 1975, leaving the estate to her niece, Wies van Moorsel. She, in turn, entrusted Van Doesburg’s vast collection of sketches and designs to the Netherlands Office for Fine Arts, now the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands.
In 1999, during preparations for the major Theo van Doesburg retrospective (2000), the Centraal Museum decided to take the collection on permanent loan, making the work and ideas of this Utrecht artist accessible for study.
