Be part of the new beginning of Root Gallery

This summer, we’re reimagining the entrance to Root Gallery, the first space visitors walk into. Not a reception desk, not a showroom, but something softer: a place to pause, to browse, to meet.
At our previous location, the informal bar became a natural gathering spot. A place for conversation and slowing down together. We’ve missed that energy. With this next step, we want to bring back that spirit in a way that suits the new space.
Over the past two years, we’ve been carefully shaping a new, sustainable location. Step by step. Every choice, big or small, made with care.
The entrance is the final part. And we want to continue in the same way.
Flexible and accessible, with elements that shift and adapt, depending on the exhibition, the season or how someone uses the space. A bench becomes a table. A corner becomes a place to stay a little longer.
To help bring this to life, we’re hosting a one-time auction. We selected 12 strong artworks, pieces that say something essential about the artists who made them. Some have been part of important exhibitions or series. Others have never been shown publicly, but reflect a clear moment in the artist’s development. Each work stands on its own, and together, they show the depth and direction of the gallery’s program.
By buying one, you’re supporting this next step for Root Gallery, and helping to make the space better for everyone who walks in.

Why an auction?
Because we want to involve the people who shape Root Gallery: our collectors, visitors, friends.
This auction gives these works a second context, while supporting the next phase of the gallery: a calm, open space with art books and room to breathe.
And just as we’re building a space that supports artists, we believe their contribution to this auction should be valued in the same way. Each participating artist receives a fair fee for the work they’ve submitted. By bidding, you support not only the gallery, but also the artists whose practices we believe in.
We expect to reopen this autumn. Until then, this is our way of inviting you to take part, and perhaps take something home.

How it works:

• 12 works available

• Each work has a starting bid, set by the gallery

• Place your bid via the form next to the artwork

• Each new bid must be at least €100 higher than the previous one

• If two bids come in at the same time, the earliest counts

• If you’re outbid, we’ll notify you personally

• Bidding closes on Sunday 27 July at 20:30

• After the deadline, we’ll contact the winning bidders

• Shipping within the Netherlands is free; for international delivery, we’ll arrange it with you directly

We’re Still Dancing In The Storm I by Sophie de Vos

‘We’re Still Dancing in The Storm’ catches silence in the midst of chaos, grasps the moment as time evaporates and seizes the beauty of decay. The work by Sophie de Vos feels like a galaxy to some, an explosion to others, while also capturing a perfect moment of stillness.
The work may also be displayed in a vertical orientation, depending on the space.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.500,- (Gallery price € 3.250,-)
Current offer: € 1.500,-

How I Wish For You Today by Karen van de Vliet

‘How I Wish For You Today’ is one of the largest works Karen van de Vliet has ever created, a large-scale piece that reflects the full range of her tactile, intuitive process. Working on unprimed cotton, she builds up layers using acrylic paint, water, and pigment, letting the materials interact and stain the surface in unpredictable ways.
What emerges is a composition that feels immediate yet carefully balanced, bold, but with space to breathe. The work invites you to stay with it a little longer, to follow the textures and tones as they shift across the surface.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 2.500,- (Gallery price € 5.950,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Can I Stay Here For A While by Karen van de Vliet

This work by Karen van de Vliet radiates both energy and softness. Layers of thick, mixed acrylic paint form shapes that seem to hover just above the surface, gestural, playful and instinctive. Karen allows the material to guide her, creating a composition where colour and texture take the lead.
She has an unmistakable way of claiming the colour pink: never sweet, but full of warmth, vitality and force. The luminous pinks, with hints of orange, lilac and yellow, draw you in, while the unpainted edges of the cotton keep the work grounded and spacious. A bold, balanced presence; expressive, but not overwhelming.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.500,- (Gallery price € 3.400,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Triangular Niche Paris Molitor Building I by Lisette Schumacher

In this work, Lisette Schumacher draws on her in-depth research into the legacy of Le Corbusier. During her stay in Paris in 2019, she visited the architect’s iconic apartment and studio at Rue Nungesser-et-Coli, a modernist landmark with a fully glazed façade, now recognised as a World Heritage Site. One detail captured her imagination in particular: a tall, sharply pointed triangular niche in the living room, once used to display what Le Corbusier called his “objects of poetic reaction”, items like shells, bones and masks that inspired his creative practice.

Rather than simply depict the niche, Schumacher takes its unusual form as a point of departure. The resulting composition is an interplay of abstract triangular shapes and subtle spatial suggestions, evoking the sculptural and contemplative quality of the original architectural detail. As with much of her work, this painting invites a quiet engagement with form, memory, and the built environment.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.200,- (Gallery price € 2.400,-)
Current offer: € 1.200,-

Sainte Marie de la Tourette – Crypt II by Lisette Schumacher

This large painting is part of Lisette Schumacher’s acclaimed Crypt series, based on her overnight stay at the Sainte Marie de la Tourette monastery near Lyon, one of Le Corbusier’s most spiritual architectural projects.

During her stay, Lisette spent hours studying the monastery’s crypt, paying close attention to how light interacts with concrete, shadow, silence and time. The stark contrasts between darkness and the filtered natural light inspired a series of abstract works that evoke a sense of stillness and depth.

In this work, the vertical colour fields echo the vertical slits of light that pierce through the space, while the gradients reflect the slow transitions your eyes experience when adjusting to dim light. Like much of Lisette’s practice, it balances observation and memory with formal material research.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.500,- (Gallery price € 3.700,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Tropic Odyssey by Noah Arends

This is one of Noah Arends’ largest textile works to date, a true statement piece. The image balances glossy drama with sculptural presence: layers of texture, shine, and form in a carefully composed clash of materials. While many of her works are more intimate in scale, this one commands attention through both size and the complexity of its layered composition.
The fringed edges add a tactile finish, softening the boldness without diminishing it. As always, Noah’s background in collage is visible throughout: every element has been deliberately selected, cut, and recombined into a new world, tactile, humorous, and full of character.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.800,- (Gallery price € 4.000,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Ruff by Noah Arends

‘Ruff’ brings together rich textures and vibrant folds in a composition that feels both ornamental and offbeat. The shiny and pleated surfaces reference fashion photography and costume history, but Noah Arends reshapes them into something entirely her own, layered, cheeky and composed with precision.
The soft blue ruffle acts as a visual echo of the image itself: playful, extravagant, and carefully exaggerated. It’s a work that charms from a distance and rewards up-close viewing.

View more images of the work.

Starting bid: € 1.100,- (Gallery price € 2.400,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Scheepvaartmuseum, Amsterdam by Jan Theun van Rees

In 2010 realised the Scheepvaartmuseum its spectacular glass dome covering the central courtyard. Immediately after its completion - with all the scaffolding still in place - the space presented itself as an abstract maze of horizontal and vertical lines. Beneath this graphic order, a second fragile structure becomes visible: the dome’s construction, subtly referencing the geometrical patterns of old sea charts. Jan Theun van Rees captured this layered spatial experience in a way that balances precision and mystery.

Starting bid: € 1.500,- (Gallery price € 3.000,-)
Current offer: € 0,-

Gebouw de Bazel, Amsterdam by Jan Theun van Rees

Currently Jan Theun van Rees builds spaces in order to 'become' photograph, as a document of a reality that once existed. These works create an image of a non-existing reality with poetic strength and demonstrate his sensitivity for light, color and texture.
The 2004 photograph presented here shows the source of his experience. Many years Van Rees photographed abandoned spaces on the verge of disappearing. His aim was to create a monument for overlooked spaces. This photograph shows the famous building "De Bazel" in Amsterdam, after ABN moved out to their new headquarters and before it became the home of the Amsterdam Archive. The space stretches out before us with subtle hues between blue and green and a bright yellow light at the end.

Starting bid: € 1.500,- (Gallery price € 3.000,-)
Current offer: € 0,-