The next step: Gallery 2.0
Project 2.0 is a relatively young art gallery that specializes in contemporary art, located on the beautiful Noordeinde in the city center of The Hague.
After being founded in 2008, they quickly grew to become one of the most established and important names within the field of modern art, emphasized by their partaking in the prestigious photography fair ‘Paris Photo’.
At Paris Photo, Gallery 2.0 was also selected to feature with a solo exhibition of the famous portrait photographer Denis Rouvre’s work.
Gallerease spoke to the founder and owner, Coen van den Oever, to find out the story behind this huge and rapid success. After a very warm welcome, Coen showed us around and explained the concept and his vision for the gallery.
We sat down amongst his favourite pieces, where it became clear that one of the reasons behind the gallery’s success is the fact that Coen knows exactly what he wants and how to turn artistic concepts into something concrete.
Coen inside Gallery 2.0.
Coen’s passion for the arts arose at a very young age, when a friend’s father that happened to be a painter encouraged him to start painting himself.
He started off by creating pieces that were inspired by artists such as Karel Appel, making them for his friends and neighbours. But when it became time to leave home to pursue his studies, he chose horticulture instead.
It wasn’t until much later, when Coen took a job at a framing business, that he returned to the world of art. After working with important artists such as Corneille, he developed the concept of ‘Art Leasing’, which was then still unheard of.
In the meantime, Coen had also become an avid collector, so establishing a gallery where he could combine all of his initiatives was the next best step.
At Galerie Den Haag the artists were very closely involved with the exhibitions, for Coen had artist studio's built which allowed the artist's to exhibit their pieces more frequently.
However, because the gallery wasn’t strictly a sales platform, it was difficult for him to be admitted to fairs, even though his artists had already become internationally recognized.
That’s when Coen decided to establish Gallery 2.0, allowing him to represent a more advanced segment of contemporary art and thus increasing his presence at fairs all over the world.
Interior of Gallery 2.0.
Project 2.0 offers a fantastic range of high quality contemporary artworks, currently featuring Ronald Westerhuis, Casper Faassen, Jacqueline Bozon and Denis Rouvre.
Coen still loves what he does, he is extremely interested in and devoted to the artists that he works with and personally makes sure that they are able to work under the best conditions ... partly due to the fact that he owns the studio’s.
But most of all, he is proud to be able to exhibit their works on an international stage, where they belong.
