The hundredth issue of Argus magazine has been published and the portraits I made for the festive extra issue, “2031”, accompanying Rudie Kagie’s article, have been purchased by the KOG (Koninklijk Oudheidkundig Genootschap = (Royal Antiquarian Society) in the Rijksmuseum! *)

This is really a huge recognition of my hard work and my choice to, starting with my residency at GreenOlivearts Residency in Northern Morocco (2016), dedicate myself to drawing all kinds of people, later also during residencies at Atelier Open (De KunstKamer), CBK Zuidoost (both in Amsterdam) and Readytex Art Gallery, in collaboration with Rinaldo Klas (in Paramaribo, Suriname).

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This was what the KOG wrote:

The KOG board has just responded enthusiastically to the purchase proposal of the Morals & Habits committee. It concerns the eight watercolors proposed by the committee by the Amsterdam artist Maartje Jaquet. We think it is an excellent, beautiful and especially topical addition to the rich collection that falls under the management of the committee, and so happily agree to the proposal.

Thank you Daniel R. Horst for seeing my work and writing the proposal for an acquisition. I am very happy, of course with this purchase of my work but also with your words:

This proposal concerns the purchase of a group of eight watercolors painted by the Amsterdam based artist Maartje Jaquet, to illustrate an article by Rudie Kagie for the magazine Argus, anniversary issue 100, to be published in April 2021. The paintings are made according to the format of 10x10cm. (…..) Several years ago (November 2017), the Commissie Atlas Zeden & Gewoonten **) made clear to the board that it has a  preference for the acquisition of unique objects for the Atlas that tell a story about morals and customs that are unique and typical of the present time. For some time now, the committee has been thinking about objects that could provide a picture of the corona crisis that has hit the Netherlands since February 2020.
We believe that this group of watercolors meets our wishes. The artist has made a personal testimony to the current crisis. She didn’t choose, like so many others, to make photos of empty streets, but for portraits of real people whose daily lives, like all of ours, have been affected by the crisis and the measures taken by the government.
The eight chosen people also provide a nice cross-section of the diversity that you will find on the street in a multicultural city, such as Amsterdam in 2021. As a committee, we believe that the acquisition of this group of eight watercolors would be a valuable addition to the collection of the Atlas Zeden en Gewoonten **) and request the board for permission to purchase these drawings.

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*) The Royal Archeology Society (short: KOG) is a society that was founded in Amsterdam in 1858 to “promote the knowledge of the past by building and maintaining collections in the field of archeology and history.” In the mid-nineteenth century, many cultural-historical objects in the Netherlands were sold abroad and monuments were demolished. Reason enough for a number of concerned Dutchmen – including Six van Hillegom (1824-1899), Leonard Marius Beels van Heemstede (1825-1882), Christiaan Pieter van Eeghen (1816-1889), Jacob van Lennep and Josephus Albertus Alberdingk Thijm – to 1858 to establish the KOG in Amsterdam. Shortly afterwards, King William III awarded the Society the designation “Royal”. Since then, an extensive collection has been built up. “

**) = Committee Atlas Customs and Manners
https://kog.nu/collectie/commissies/collectie-atlas-zeden-en-gewoonten/