
The Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten (State Academy of Fine Arts) was founded in 1870 in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
. It is a classical academy, a place where
philosopher
Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
s, academics and artists meet to test and exchange ideas and knowledge. The school supports
visual artists
The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and texti ...
with a two-year curriculum.
The Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten was the home of
Amsterdam Impressionism
Amsterdam Impressionism was an art movement in late 19th-century Holland. It is associated especially with George Hendrik Breitner and is also known as the ''School of Allebé''.
The innovative ideas about painting of the French Impressionist ...
, part of the international
impressionist
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
movement, and is known as the School of Allebé by art historians;
August Allebé became the school's director in 1880. In French, the school was called "l'Académie Royale des Beaux Arts d'Amsterdam". Among its pioneers here were
George Breitner,
Jan Toorop
Johannes Theodorus "Jan" Toorop[Jan Toorop]
Netherlands Institute for Art History, 2014. Retrieved on 18 February 201 ...
,
Piet Mondrian
Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan (; 7 March 1872 – 1 February 1944), known after 1911 as Piet Mondrian (, , ), was a Dutch Painting, painter and Theory of art, art theoretician who is regarded as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. He w ...
,
Jacques Witjens and
Willem Arnoldus Witsen. Other artists connected with the academy were Hendrik Petrus Berlage, Willem Wiegmans, Constant Nieuwenhuijs, Karel Appel, Corneille, Ger Lataster, Willem Hofhuizen, and Jaap Min.
The school provides an education academically comparable with a university. There are open days each year, which provide an opportunity to see the work of young artists.
1718 to 1869
From 1718 to 1819 Amsterdam had an art school, the ''
Stadstekenacademie''. In 1820, the ''Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten'' continued the artistic tradition. The prevailing style was panel painting in oil,
landscape painting
Landscape painting, also known as landscape art, is the depiction in painting of natural scenery such as mountains, valleys, rivers, trees, and forests, especially where the main subject is a wide view—with its elements arranged into a cohe ...
influenced by
neoclassicism
Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative arts, decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiq ...
. In 1869, the Amsterdam school received its present name.
Early history

The academy was a place for philosophers, scientists and artists to come together and share knowledge and ideas. In 1870, the academy was founded by King
William III William III or William the Third may refer to:
Kings
* William III of Sicily ()
* William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702)
* William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg (1817–1890)
N ...
as a successor to the 19th-century Koninklijke Academie, the 18th-century Stads Teekenacademie and the 17th-century Konstkamer to give visual artists an educational opportunity. Early students included
George Hendrik Breitner
George Hendrik Breitner (12 September 1857 – 5 June 1923) was a Dutch painter and photographer. An important figure in Amsterdam Impressionism, he is noted especially for his paintings of street scenes and harbours in a realistic style. He p ...
,
Isaac Israëls
Isaac Lazarus Israëls (; 3 February 1865 – 7 October 1934) was a Dutch painter associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement.
Biography
The son of Jozef Israëls, one of the most respected painters of the Hague School, an ...
and
Willem Witsen
Willem Arnoldus Witsen (13 August 1860 – 13 April 1923, Amsterdam) was a Dutch painter and photographer associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement.
Witsen's work, influenced by James McNeill Whistler, often portrayed calm urban lands ...
, who were influenced by Amsterdam Impressionism.
Under director
August Allebé, the
Saint Luke
Luke the Evangelist was one of the Four Evangelists—the four traditionally ascribed authors of the canonical gospels. The Early Church Fathers ascribed to him authorship of both the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. Prominent figu ...
(patron saint of artists) student movement was founded. Allebé's cosmopolitan attitude changed the school's method of instruction, emphasizing the
avant-garde
In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...
.
Present day
Around 1985, the school received the additional title of Instituut voor Praktijkstudie and offered postdoctoral education. In 1992 it moved into a former cavalry barracks at
Sarphatistraat
The Sarphatistraat is a street in the center of Amsterdam between Frederiksplein and Oostenburgergracht at the Cruquiuskade.
The street crosses the Amstel and forms an almost long connection between the southern part of the Grachtengordel and th ...
470 in Amsterdam, and the buildings were renovated. In November 1999, it became an independent art institution. The school is financed by the Ministry of Education and private sponsors. The institute offers workshops with specialized technical personnel and a library focusing on
contemporary art
Contemporary art is a term used to describe the art of today, generally referring to art produced from the 1970s onwards. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a ...
and
art history
Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history.
Tradit ...
. Students receive a scholarship and are offered a studio in which to live. In recent years nearly 1,200 students have applied for a place at the academy, and each year about 20 are accepted. The artists come from all over the world, with less than half from the Netherlands. Artists and
art critic
An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating art. Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures, and catalogue ...
s are often invited to visit student studios.
Prix de Rome

The academy awards a
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...
to eligible artists and
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
s. The award originated with the French
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...
in 1666. In 1808
Louis Bonaparte
Louis Bonaparte (born Luigi Buonaparte; 2 September 1778 – 25 July 1846) was a younger brother of Napoleon, Napoleon I, Emperor of the French. He was a monarch in his own right from 1806 to 1810, ruling over the Kingdom of Holland (a French c ...
introduced the prize in the Netherlands to promote art, and it was supported by Dutch
King William I. Since 1870 the Rijksakademie has made the award, the oldest and most valuable art prize in the Netherlands.
In 1985, the Prix de Rome was reorganised. Prize money was increased, and there were more participating artists; new art categories were added, which change annually. In 2006 its name was changed to "Prix de Rome.nl" and it is awarded in two categories: architecture and fine arts. The prize is
€
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists of a stylized letter E (or epsilon), crossed by t ...
40,000 and a residency in Rome.
Faculty
*
Hans Aarsman (born 1951)
*
August Allebé (1838–1927), professor in 1870, director 1880–1906
*
Nico Bakker (1967–1969)
*
Pierre Cuypers
Petrus Josephus Hubertus "Pierre" Cuypers (16 May 1827 – 3 March 1921) was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station (1881–1889) and the Rijksmuseum (1876–1885), both in Amsterdam. ...
(1827–1921)
*
Carel Ludewijk Dake (1857–1918)
*
Antoon Derkinderen
Antonius Johannes (Antoon) Derkinderen ('s-Hertogenbosch, 20 December 1858 – Amsterdam, 2 November 1925) was a Dutch painting, painter, Glass artist, Drawing, Draftsman and designer of book covers.
Life
Early years
Antoon Derkinderen wa ...
(1859–1925), director after Allebé
*
Marinus Heijl (1835–1931)
*
Richard Roland Holst
Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst (4 December 1868, Amsterdam – 31 December 1938, Bloemendaal) was a Dutch painter, draftsman, lithographer, book cover designer, etcher and writer. Many of his works were in a modified Symbolist style.
Life and wor ...
(1868–1931), director after Derkinderen
*
Johannes Hendricus Jurres (1875–1946)
*
Petrus Josephus Lutgers (1808–1874)
*
Georg Sturm
Georg may refer to:
* Georg (film), ''Georg'' (film), 1997
*Georg (musical), Estonian musical
* Georg (given name)
* Georg (surname)
* , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker
* Spiders Georg, an Internet meme
See also
* George (disambiguation)
{{di ...
(1855–1923)
*
Charles Verlat (1824–1890)
*
Nicolaas van der Waay (1855–1936)
*
Gerhard Westermann (1880–1971)
*
Petrus van Wijnveld (1820–1902)
Students

*
Nico Bakker (1936–1969)
*
Tala Madani (1981)
*
Ryan Gander (1976)
*
Bojan Šarčević (1974)
*
Firoz Mahmud
Firoz Mahmud () (born September 5, 1974 in Khulna, Bangladesh) is a Bangladeshi visual artist based in Japan. Mahmud was the first Bangladeshi fellow artist in research at Rijksakademie Van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam. His work has been exhibit ...
(1974)
*
Jill Magid (1974)
*
Runa Islam
Runa Islam (; born 10 December 1970) is a Bangladeshi-born British visual artist and filmmaker based in London. She was a nominee for the 2008 Turner Prize. She is principally known for her film works.
Early life
Islam was born in Dhaka, Pakis ...
(1970)
*
Gerard Muller
Gerard Gustaaf Muller (20 January 1861 – 26 March 1929) was a Dutch Impressionism, Impressionist painter associated with the 19th-century Dutch literature#The Movement of 1880, Tachtigers literary movement. His later works show elements of Ori ...
(1861–1929)
*
Carlos Amorales (1970)
*
Mounir Fatmi (1970)
*
Hans Op de Beeck
Hans Op de Beeck (1969, Turnhout) is a Belgian visual artist who lives and works in Brussels. For over twenty years he has exhibiting internationally.
Education/programs
* 2002–2003: Artist at the MoMA PS1 Studio Program, New York
* 1998–19 ...
(1969)
*
Liu Ye (1964)
*
Karel Appel
Christiaan Karel Appel (; 25 April 1921 – 3 May 2006) was a Dutch painter, sculptor, and poet. He started painting at the age of fourteen and studied at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam in the 1940s. He was one of the founders of the avant-gard ...
(1921–2006)
*
Antonio Vega Macotela (2011–2012)
*
Lizzy Ansingh (1875–1959)
[One of the ]Amsterdamse Joffers
The Amsterdamse Joffers were a group of women artists who met weekly in Amsterdam at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. They supported each other in their professional careers. Most of them were students of the Rijksakademie ...
*
Floris Arntzenius
Pieter Florentius Nicolaas Jacobus Arntzenius (9 June 1864 – 16 February 1925) was a Dutch painter, water-colourist, illustrator and printmaker. He is considered a representative of the younger generation of the Hague School.
Arntzenius was bo ...
(1864–1925)
*
Johan Braakensiek
Johan Coenraad Braakensiek (24 May 1858 – 27 February 1940) was a Dutch painter, illustrator, caricaturist and political cartoonist. He is the grandfather of Jan van Oort.
Personal life
Braakensiek was born in Amsterdam, the son of Albert ...
(1858–1940)
*
Nicolaas Bastert (1854–1939)
*
Tjeerd Bottema
Tjeerd (Tsjeard) Bottema (6 February 1884 in Langezwaag – 8 March 1978 in Katwijk) was a Dutch painter, illustrator and book cover designer.
Biography
Bottema was a student at Kunstnijverheidsschool Quellinus and the Rijksakademie van ...
(1884–1978)
*
George Hendrik Breitner
George Hendrik Breitner (12 September 1857 – 5 June 1923) was a Dutch painter and photographer. An important figure in Amsterdam Impressionism, he is noted especially for his paintings of street scenes and harbours in a realistic style. He p ...
(1857–1923)
*
Cornelius de Bruin (1870–1940)
*
Constant Anton Nieuwenhuys (1920–2005)
*
Antoon Derkinderen
Antonius Johannes (Antoon) Derkinderen ('s-Hertogenbosch, 20 December 1858 – Amsterdam, 2 November 1925) was a Dutch painting, painter, Glass artist, Drawing, Draftsman and designer of book covers.
Life
Early years
Antoon Derkinderen wa ...
(1859–1925)
*
Sophie Ernst (1972)
*
Leo Gestel
Leo Gestel (11 November 1881, Woerden – 26 November 1941, Hilversum) was a Dutch painter. His father Willem Gestel was also an artist. Leo Gestel experimented with cubism, expressionism, futurism and postimpressionism. Along with Piet Mondria ...
(1881–1941)
*
Jan F. Geusebroek (1922–2015)
*
Arnold Marc Gorter (1866–1933)
*
Richard Roland Holst
Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst (4 December 1868, Amsterdam – 31 December 1938, Bloemendaal) was a Dutch painter, draftsman, lithographer, book cover designer, etcher and writer. Many of his works were in a modified Symbolist style.
Life and wor ...
(1868–1938)
*
Isaac Israëls
Isaac Lazarus Israëls (; 3 February 1865 – 7 October 1934) was a Dutch painter associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement.
Biography
The son of Jozef Israëls, one of the most respected painters of the Hague School, an ...
(1865–1934)
*
Cornelius Jetses (1873–1955)
*
Arnold Hendrik Koning (1860–1945)
*
Hendrik Maarten Krabbé (1868–1931)
*
Lambert Lourijsen (1885–1950)
*
Jacobus van Looy (1855–1930)
*
Kees Maks
Cornelis Johannes Maks (August 22, 1876 – October 28, 1967), known as Kees Maks, was a Dutch painter born in Amsterdam.
He studied for a time at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam, before becoming a pupil of George Hendrik Breitner.Jansen ...
(1876–1967)
*
Bjarne Melgaard (1967)
*
Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita
Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita (6 June 1868 – 11 February 1944) was a Dutch graphic artist active in the years before the Second World War. His pupils included graphic artist M. C. Escher (1898–1972). A Sephardic Jew, in his old age he was se ...
(1868–1944)
*
Wally Moes (1856–1918)
*
Piet Mondrian
Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan (; 7 March 1872 – 1 February 1944), known after 1911 as Piet Mondrian (, , ), was a Dutch Painting, painter and Theory of art, art theoretician who is regarded as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. He w ...
(1872–1944)
*
Anthon van Rappard (1858–1892)
*
Suze Robertson (1855–1922)
*
Hendrika van der Pek (1867–1926)
*
Gerda Rubinstein (1931–2022)
*
Jan Sluyters
Johannes Carolus Bernardus (Jan) Sluijters, or Sluyters (17 December 1881 in 's-Hertogenbosch – 8 May 1957 in Amsterdam) was a Dutch painter and co-founder of the Moderne Kunstkring.
Sluijters (in English often spelled "Sluyters") was a leadin ...
(1891–1957)
[1904 Prix de Rome winner]
*
Hobbe Smith (1862–1942)
*
Chavalit Soemprungsuk (1939–2020)
*
Jo Bauer-Stumpff (1873–1964)
*
Willem Bastiaan Tholen
Willem Bastiaan Tholen (Amsterdam, 13 February 1860 – The Hague, 5 December 1931) was a Dutch painter, draftsman and printmaker with some connections to members of the Hague School and later associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movemen ...
(1860–1931)
*
Jan Toorop
Johannes Theodorus "Jan" Toorop[Jan Toorop]
Netherlands Institute for Art History, 2014. Retrieved on 18 February 201 ...
(1858–1928)
*
Jan Pieter Veth (1864–1925)
*
Nicolaas Warb (1906-1957, enrolled 1924)
*
Nicolaas van der Waay (1855–1936)
*
Gerhard Westermann (1880–1971)
*
Maurits van der Valk (1857–1935)
*
Petrus Theodorus van Wijngaerdt (1873–1964)
*
Jan Hillebrand Wijsmuller
Jan Hillebrand Wijsmuller (13 February 1855 in Amsterdam – 23 May 1925 in Amsterdam) was a Dutch people, Dutch painter. He belongs to ''The 2. Golden Age of Dutch Painting''.
He is an impressionist of the School of August Allebé, Allebé, bett ...
(1855–1925)
*
Ernst Witkamp (1854–1897)
*
Willem Witsen
Willem Arnoldus Witsen (13 August 1860 – 13 April 1923, Amsterdam) was a Dutch painter and photographer associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement.
Witsen's work, influenced by James McNeill Whistler, often portrayed calm urban lands ...
(1860–1923)
*
Mikołaj Sobczak (2021-2023)
See also
*
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...
References
External links
Official website
Official website in English
Prix de Rome
Mondrian Fund
{{coord missing, Netherlands
Buildings and structures in Amsterdam
Arts in the Netherlands
1870 establishments in the Netherlands
Educational institutions established in 1870
19th-century architecture in the Netherlands
Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten