Solo exhibition Erik Mattijssen at Museum More

During MORE's 10th anniversary, artist Erik Mattijssen (1957) is also celebrating a jubilee: this year it will be exactly 40 years since his first solo exhibition. Under the title Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Museum MORE will show a wide selection from Mattijssen's oeuvre. This melodious line from an American children's song can quickly catch you off guard. Just like Mattijssen's masterful art. Just as this seemingly cheerful song eventually acquired a dark undertone through use in (cult) films, Mattijssen's seemingly cheerful and melancholic subjects creep up on you with an alienating feeling. His colourful puppets, household objects and interiors, which he paints and draws in large and small formats, evoke not only an intimate atmosphere but also melancholy and haunting. Life is but a dream. Under the surface lurks a crocodile, which, in dreamland at full moon, can suddenly open its mouth. The exhibition brings together some 50 works from many individuals, institutions and museums. Especially for this exhibition, Mattijssen created a metre-long work in which a giant merry-go-round is the subject. Curator is Julia Dijkstra, in collaboration with Erik Mattijssen. On view in the Garden Hall of Museum MORE in Gorssel from 13 April to 26 October 2025.