Rijksmuseum – Metamorphosis

Passion, desire, lust, jealousy, cunning and deceit. The Rijksmuseum takes you on a journey into one of the greatest and most important sources of inspiration for artists: The Metamorphoses by the poet Ovid.

This classic from antiquity has been read and reinterpreted by artists for centuries. In the major spring exhibition Metamorphoses, you dive into Ovid’s two-thousand-year-old poem about vengeful gods, ingenious heroes and high-minded mortals.

Metamorphoses brings together more than 80 masterpieces from museums and collections around the world. From Titian, Correggio and Caravaggio to Rodin, Brancusi, Magritte and Bourgeois.

At the invitation of the Rijksmuseum and in close collaboration with Dr. Frits Scholten (Senior Curator of Sculpture), Aldo Bakker Studio designed the scenography of this exhibition. 

Due to the diverse collection of works, we have chosen for quiet elements, defined by their size, that emerge from the existing architecture. The aim is not to add to the space, but rather to create space in combination with a colour palette that develops in each room and thus responds to the collection. Based on the same considerations, we have compiled a colour palette that develops per room, based on the collection, with each passageway displaying a combination/transformation of colors.

Opening: February 5th (Invitation only)

Hours: Open daily 9 to 17h

Duration: 6 February to 25 May 2026