Art? - Museum Arnhem 2

At Museum Arnhem, you can visit the Sculpture Garden and the adjoining café for free. For anyone in the area who doesn’t want to spend any more money, this might be a nice little bonus. Exhibitions are also held there, and one of them was on needlework. I visited on August 15, 2026.Personally, I didn’t find it particularly special, and I did wonder who had decided it was worth exhibiting. That said, there were some nice pieces, such as the portraits of forgotten scientists, particularly women, as the sign stated. The guide couldn’t really tell me much, at least not in response to my questions. She was literally at a loss for words and apparently felt it was safer to talk to the ‘ignorant crowd’ who didn’t ask any questions in response to what she said.

To be honest, I saw better art – in this case, needlework – at the art market in Sonsbeek Park. I even said to the artist, who also paints and sews bags and is super creative: ‘How come your work isn’t on display in the Arnhem Museum?’

And that, of course, is the question: why is it that one piece is featured in an exhibition and another isn’t? This is undoubtedly largely down to the people who organised it and their connections. Presumably, they won’t look any further than the end of their noses. It struck me that a number of the embroidered pieces or crocheted collars had been borrowed from people (grandparents?).

What left a slightly bad taste in my mouth was that, as the guide also mentioned, much of what is on display at the Arnhem Museum seems to focus on downtrodden women who feel marginalised. This is certainly true in many respects, but when this anger and frustration radiates from every corner and this is the theme of an exhibition, I’ve had enough of it. Incidentally, there were also creations made by men.

This next one 'Fluitekruid' (cow parsley) is my favourite.
It's huge.

Well, what do you want me to say? The photos probably say it all. In the Netherlands, you won’t see many people doing cross-stitch or embroidery anymore, although you can still find small kits for sale in shops that stock craft supplies, amongst other places. These are usually intended for children. Perhaps some craft shops that also sell wool still stock embroidery kits for adults. They usually have a design printed on them. So this is a lot easier than creating your own design and embroidering it with cross-stitch, which, incidentally, isn’t really that difficult as you can sketch it out on graph paper. It does require a fair bit of patience, though, and it’s not really my thing, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think it’s lovely. Personally, I’d go for what’s in the first photo – which, incidentally, doesn’t feature any cross-stitch – the basketballs and the portraits (see at the bottom).

I like these balls











No idea what this should be

Remarks underneath: It’s a good idea, but I’m not too keen on the crude language, the way the message is conveyed. Direct, yes; honest, yes; humour, sarcasm yes, but here too it feels as though the society where people do nothing but blather on about feelings has taken over, and anyone with a different opinion is silenced with the same old clichés. Of the slogans below, I found these two the least offensive...

Whatever you can paint with paint, you can also do with a needle and thread. One is becoming increasingly popular, whilst the other is falling further and further out of favour. Perhaps the lack of concentration and the fact that it takes longer to complete also play a part here.

Landscape

Portraits of forgotten (or is if iets) scientists.

Art? - Museum Arnhem 1
Entry Expositions: free on certain days/dates + those living in Arnhem.
6.9.26