Jan van Scorel and the Zijperpolder

A story of vision and change

October 10, 2026 to February 28, 2027

Jan van Scorel and the Zijperpolder
A story of vision and change

In his last stage of life, the famous 16th-century Renaissance artist Jan van Scorel undertook a surprising and ambitious project: the embankment of the Zijpe. This original tidal inlet between Petten and Callantsoog had been under water at high tide for centuries, making life there uncertain. Van Scorel's original dike design, in the National Archives, marks the start of diking in North Holland, marking a turning point in man's struggle against water. This forms the starting point of the exhibition.   

Through an artist's imagination, the landscape was transformed. In line with this, Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar, together with a contemporary maker of Hypersolid - and his imagination - makes the sixteenth-century landscape tangible in a digital way. And so we connect art, history and technology - of then and now - to make a story about vision and change tangible. 

Practical information
The exhibition will be on view from Oct. 10, 2026, through Feb. 28, 2027, at Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar.