Royal Blue: William and Mary’s Finest Delftware

While many museums are shuttered due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Apollo’s usual weekly pick of exhibitions will include shows at institutions that are now reopening as well as digital projects providing virtual access to art and culture.

This exhibition is a rare opportunity to encounter important examples of Delftware, usually scattered in collections around the globe, in the Netherlands, in a city neighbouring the birthplace of the blue-and-white earthenware. The Kunstmuseum den Haag was keen to make the exhibition available from the museum’s reopening date on 1 June, albeit in incomplete form; works will be added to the display throughout its run (until 22 November). The focus is on Delftware produced in the years 1689–1702, during the reign of William of Orange in England; among the highlights is a pair of vases in the shape of William and Mary, made in around 1690 and from the museum’s own collection. Visit the Kunstmuseum den Haag’s website for more information.

Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary here

Pair of ‘William and Mary’ flower vases (c. 1690), Delft. Kunstmuseum den Haag. Photo: Mounir Raji – Visionary Agency

Wall plaque from the Water Gallery of Queen Mary II Stuart at Hampton Court Palace (c. 1690), Delft. Rijksmuseum, on loan from the Koninklijk Oudheidkundig Genootschap

Pyramid-shaped flower vases (c. 1690), Delft. Kunstmuseum den Haag. Photo: Gerrit Schreurs