Annet Gelink Gallery 25th Annyversary

26 years ago, around this time, Joeri called me and said, “I found a great place for your new gallery.”

At the time, we had just gotten married, had a six-month-old child, and were totally in love—ready to start another new adventure.

In January 2000, the gallery was born, with the group show Loneliness in the City by Alicia Framis. In those first years, I wanted to explore the space. Rita Ackermann, Marina Abramović, Kiki Lamers, and Victor Man passed through its rooms, while I began working consistently with a group of artists who would become the core of what is now 31 represented artists.

 

Together with them, the space became more and more mine—a place of challenges and continuous change, never fixed and always open to new ideas, encounters, experiences. I wanted it to be a place where artists could feel free to experiment. Over the past 25 years, my focus has always been on supporting them and helping them build international careers, with complete trust in their different languages and practices.

 

And what a run we’ve had! We’re the only Dutch art gallery to have participated in Art Basel in Basel for over 20 years—alongside AB Miami, ARCO, Armory, Artissima, Frieze London and New York, Paris Photo, Shanghai Contemporary...

But one of the questions I’ve been asking myself recently is: in this new contemporary art landscape, are art fairs still the place to present art? That’s a question I’ll keep in mind as we move forward.

We’ve been present in more than one Venice Biennale, and all of our artists have received major institutional recognition.

 

None of this would have been possible without my team—a group that has changed over time, but where the relationships and connections have remained strong to this day. Thank you, Floor, who’s been my right hand for more than 20 years; Wouter, for the brilliant installations; Koen, for crunching the numbers, Gabriele for the designs; Giulia, Boyd, Marjolein, and the newbies Jasper, Esmee, and Jim.

And everyone over the years: Michel, Julia, Nadine, Martijn, Danila, Roos, Geer, Renée, Alex, Jo, Virág, Macarena, Giovanni, Maite, Mylène, Katarina, Snorre... I’m probably forgetting someone.

 

Thanks to all the museum directors, curators, writers, and journalists who trusted our proposals and believed in our artists. A deep thanks to our passionate and visionary collectors, whose constant support has been instrumental in bringing the artists’ projects to life.

 

To my artists—there are no words to express the joy of knowing you and working with you. Without you, there is no gallery. I’m forever indebted to you for how you make my life so incredibly rich and whole.

 

A final thanks goes to Experimental Jetset for gifting the most amazing project, and for envisioning with me a series of objects celebrating the past and looking into the future with renewed eyes, energy, and love for art.

 

Curated by Floor Wullems, The Eye of Amsterdam is the perfect exhibition for this celebration—so vibrant yet intimate, so ‘Amsterdam’ yet universal.

To me, in a way, this show echoes and subverts that first Loneliness in the City title: we’re not alone. I’m proud and grateful for the strong community that surrounds this place, and I look forward to the unknown of the coming years.

 

—  Annet