Lakeside Collection entrusted to the care of Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen

The Rotterdam-based art collector Ali Keles has found a home for his Lakeside Collection in the new depot. The collection consists of more than 80 modern and contemporary works, which will be stored, cared for or indeed displayed in a dedicated depot compartment

The corporate collection of Lakeside Capital Partners, also known as the Lakeside Collection, will occupy a dedicated space at Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam. The Lakeside Collection is thus at the forefront of private collections being entrusted to the Rotterdam depot, which will receive the same care and attention as the museum collection. Ali Keles, Founding Managing Partner of Lakeside Capital Partners and the collection’s founder, signed a long-running agreement with Boijmans director Sjarel Ex for the housing of the Lakeside Collection earlier this month. It now occupies its own compartment in the depot, with an exhibition space, an artist-in-residence studio, a storage space and boardroom, a floor area of 173 square metres in all.

Ali Keles, Founding Managing Partner of Lakeside Capital Partners: "The Lakeside Collection is proud of and grateful for this collaboration. Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen was chosen because of the professionalism and controlled environment, not merely in terms of safety but also because of the superb physical and environmental conditions whereunder the artworks will be stored, with restoration and maintenance provided by museum experts. This relationship arose from the desire to support the museum and allow the Lakeside Collection to continue growing in an inspirational and flourishing setting."

Lakeside Capital Partners

Lakeside Capital Partners is a Netherlands-based boutique financial services and investment group. The Lakeside Collection is composed of modern and contemporary art with a local presence, namely being exhibited in Villa Lakeside, affiliated venues and now Depot Boijmans as well. Diversity and inclusion is a valuable well of inspiration for the Lakeside Collection, which comprises more than 80 works of art created by local and international artists from 1946 to the present, including work by Tomáš Libertíny, Hans op de Beeck and Iván Navarro. The Lakeside Collection believes in the power of art and conveys inspiration to its beholders. The collection encompasses many different media, from video art, sculptures, paintings, film and photography to prints. It was established in 2015 and since then has been increasingly present on the art market. In 2019 the Lakeside Collection became an official member of the Netherlands Association of Corporate Art Collections (Vereniging Bedrijfscollecties Nederland, or VBCN). At Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen part of the Lakeside Collection will be on show in its own depot compartment, the other works will be stored away, and every year young artists can compete to become an artist in residence.

Caring for corporate collections

King Willem-Alexander will officially open the world’s first publicly accessible art depot on 5 November. Besides the role it fulfils as the museum’s engine room, the depot accommodates more than just its own museum collection. Part of the building can be rented as storage space for art owned by private collectors and for corporate collections such as the Lakeside Collection, as well as those of companies such as KPN. The tenants of these compartments can, in turn, open their depots to the public, and they can request the same service and professionalism as afforded to the museum collection.

Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen is a collaboration that involves Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, the City of Rotterdam and Stichting De Verre Bergen. The depot was designed by MVRDV and realised by BAM Bouw en Techniek.