art and churches - 1985/2019

In 1985 Bart Drost discovered the little Church of Pressingen, the smallest village of Netherlands. Beautifully situated in the Ooypolder, near Nijmegen. The Church was just a times per year used by the scouting and further not used. Cold, chilly and neglected. But a golden spot, impregnated with a high 'soul'. It would be Drosts first exhibition which he entirely initiated at his own strength and responsibility. It would turn out to be also the first in a series: six years running Drost made an installation made specifically for this Church. There would follow more churches and chapels in his carreer. Over the years the Church of Persingen has become a popular exhibition Resort: now there is heating, it'snicely painted, a lot of possibilities. But the soul is gone.  Over the years, Bart Drost has realized art projects in various other chapels, churches and churches.

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'playing in X-mas times' - 2018/19

In the winter period, the Grote or Pancratiuskerk in Emmen organizes exhibitionbs that are linked to the religious tradition. The inspiration square commission - in search of the nuances in a (birth) story - Bart Drost invited to make an exhibition during Christmas time, resulting in the show under the title 'Playing with Christmas' .

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'boys' - 2015

For Vishal and the Great or St. Bavo Church in Haarlem Bart Drost made the exhibition 'boys'.

At a time when men at all seem to stay the boys, an artistic reflection on this theme
should not be missing .
The artists in the exhibition depict in their work life, the experiences and the experiences of the boy- c.q. manhood.
'Boys' is about dreams and expectations about possible and impossible.
On images that people have in their heads.
And dismantling it.

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collected poems (ode to reve) - 2012

'Give what you have and map the story' was the command that Bart Drost himself gave in making the exhibition 'collected poems' in the Chapel of Notre Dame des Arts. The artist Drost is at his best when he gets free hand and feels unseen. In a nothing veiled confession he brings works from the years 1983-2010 together and indeed the boys image (once again) seems to be the poetic heart.

Drost bears the exhibition 'collected poems' on to the Dutch writer Gerard Reve, under whose influence he has dared to break limits within his art work.

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sometimes it snows in april (I'm not in love) - 2009

The exhibition "sometimes it snows in april" from Bart Drost is inspired by a song by Prince. A tacking between hope, melancholy and despair. Everything always is about 'love', isn't it?
A big heart, composed of 23 fluorescent tubes on the floor dominates the chapel of Notre Dame des Arts. Drosts paintings on the walls. But they look different: the bright colours that are typical for his work until then are covered by a dense white haze. Lines and colors change in gray tones. In his euphoria Drost once again spiraled out: spacious 100 of his works he has painted over in transparent white; finally only 15 of them are part of this exhibition.
In the apse of the Church three monitors play the shortmovies 'desire', 'loss' and 'hiatus', around a small flickering heart in bright red neon.
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the way we were - 1996

In 1996 artists' initiative Foundation The Achterstraat in Hoorn celebrated her 11th anniversary. Bart Drost was invited to lighten up this party with an active Visual attraction. In 'The way we were" was on the floor of the Chapel for Maria formed a carpet of 250 images in color, the equivalent of these images in black and white he hung at the walls. During the festive meeting on 26 October 1996 he switched the images one by one. The present attendees were witnesses of the transformation black and with into color. The result was a new installation: a carpet of 250 black and white images on the floor and 250 identical motifs in color on the walls.

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seven carpets for martin - 1990

Attention for decorative motifs in Bart Drost's work: fishes, flowers, leaves, stars, zebra stripes and red-and-white dots. As a reaction to the cold stone floor Drost has chosen tufted woollen carpets. 'Zeven kleden voor Martijn': there are six carpets of 200x200 cm, together forming the seventh. Each carpet is accompanied by one colour photo: a shot in Drost's studio. For each picture he decorated all the walls, each time with another one of his motifs. In the studio a boy is walking, sitting or standing.

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images of boys - 1990

"Images of Boys" is the title of Bart Drosts show in the Church of Velp (Grave): a series of nine monumental objects. The performances -silhouettes of boys- are a part of his first exhibition in the Church of Persingen, called 'tree blue bass' (1985). Drost frees the guys, there painted in line on canvas , from the plane and recreates them into three-dimensional images. Wonderfully composed of two plates, sawn timber and twined in a cross. A black coating ensures the necessary drama and covers the naked truth of plywood and drawing.

The painted wall flowers in the Church refers to the exhibition 'Sven ruggs for Martijn', which at the same time can be seen in the Church of Persingen.
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the big adventure - 1989

'The big adventure' : all paintings on bitumen paper Bart Drost has made until 1987 are represented in the church of Persingen. Of each work three fragments have been chosen; these five hundred sections are applied to hand-moulded and -painted tiles. Together with two thousand sunflower yellow glazed tiles they make up a floor that has been perfectly constructed in loose sand. After the exhibition period of three weeks the floor was removed and the tiles were then used in various houses in The Netherlands, England and Germany.

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farewell to an anxious past - 1988

'Farewell to an anxious past': a gigantic canvas (1200x800 cm) dominates the little church of the small Dutch village Persingen. The canvas is hand-painted in red with hundreds of wormlike figures. 'The church is full, you can not go in.' A picture of a little boy in the sea is standing on the altar. You can't see him from afar, in spite of the light directed on him. You can only observe him through the telescope at the entrance of the church.

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the emperors new clothes - 1987

'The emperors new clothes' : the little church of Persingen isn't a gallery and according to Bart Drost 'hanging paintings' is not advisable. That's why he has taken away characteristic elements from his paintings, cut these images more or less three-dimensionally from multiply and painted them. In this way objects arise that are litterally derived from his paintings. 
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for my youngest son - 1986

'For my youngest son': central in this exhibition in the little church of Persingen is a merry-go-round consisting of twelve black papier-maché horses. They are dancing around an ethereal column with on top a small green tree. A boy's figure painted on canvas and pressed between two glass plates, a hobbyhorse, a crown with coloured paper leaves, a wreath of artificial silk daffodils and an iron plate with the text 'I love you' make the exhibition complete.

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tree blue bass - 1985

A canvas of 800x800 cm, on which nude boys are painted in candid postures, dominates the space in front of the altar of the little church of Persingen. The painting suspends from two birch-trunks. Hundred shorts are hanging on nylon threads. In a fresh green colour 'boom blauw bas' ('tree blue bass') has been embroidered on each short. In a corner of the church a bass instrument is standing. In the other corner a ghetto blaster is playing repetitions of bass music.


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en hij zag dat het goed was (werken in de kerk)

In 1985 Bart Drost 'discovered' the church of Persingen, the smallest village in the Netherlands. Beautifully situated in the Ooypolder, near Nijmegen. Easy to cycle from his home and studio. The church turned out to be a golden place, filled with a high 'soul content'. He made an installation especially for this church for six consecutive years. Over the years, Persingen's church became a popular exhibition center. There was heating, good lighting and a hanging system. Everything has been nicely renovated, but the soul is gone. Several churches, chapels and churches would follow, where he was able to realize art projects with full conviction. This booklet provides an overview of it over the period 1985-2015.


Released in 2017

full color digiprint

64 pages, glued

Euro 15.00


Text in Dutch


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Bart Drost

free artist

Graafseweg 183a
6531ZR Nijmegen
The Netherlands