Forest of the City

This autumn, raam art space will be transformed into a flourishing forest, featuring Anouk Griffioen’s life-sized charcoal drawings. Last summer, Griffioen exhibited her towering, monumental drawings at the Kröller-Müller Museum, surrounded by the forest. Now, she presents her work in raam’s glass exhibition space, right in the heart of the city. Come and wander through raam, and allow your thoughts to get temporarily lost in Griffioen’s natural world. Step outside the art space and find yourself immediately back in the hustle and bustle of the city.

An important source for the exhibition is a photograph of a tree-lined avenue taken by Anouk Griffioen’s father on the day she was born. After his death, Anouk inherited his collection of photography books, filled with photographs of nature that he carefully assembled into albums. She decided to use these photographs as the starting point for the exhibition.

Griffioen transforms both memory and her observations of landscapes into virtuosic charcoal drawings, often on a monumental scale, on paper or canvas. Her work explores the conflict between humans and nature, and between the city and the landscape. The continuous expansion of cities puts pressure on the livability of our surroundings. By giving vegetation a place once again within the built environment, Griffioen appeals to our longing for nature. It is an invitation to leave the beaten path and discover new perspectives.

Anouk Griffioen (1979) exhibited at Vriend van Bavink in 2020. In autumn 2026, her work will be on view at Kasteel Twickel, part of Museum MORE. From October 8 to December 7, she will also be working at STUDIO ARTIS, the public artists’ studio in the Groote Museum at ARTIS.