Solo exhibition at Singer Laren
PRESS RELEASE: Anyone who has ever stood in front of an imposing mountain landscape knows how small and insignificant a person can feel—and at the same time connected to something greater than themselves. It is precisely this feeling that Vivian Ammerlaan (1994) seeks in her work. This fall, Singer Laren is showing new work by the young artist in Vivian Ammerlaan in the Rocky Mountains. Ammerlaan is the winner of the John & Marine van Vlissingen Art Foundation Prize 2025. The prize consists of an inspirational trip, a book, and an exhibition at Singer Laren. For her trip, she has chosen the Rocky Mountains, a landscape of overwhelming grandeur that inspires her to take a new step in her artistry.
Waanplekken
Since 2015, Vivian Ammerlaan has been working on her series Waanplekken. In her studio, she constructs fictional landscapes with everyday materials such as salt, paper, and wood, which in her images transform into majestic vistas: deserts, valleys, and mountains. These are carefully constructed illusions that feel familiar but do not exist anywhere, blurring the line between reality and imagination.
“With her art, Vivian knows how to create dream worlds and landscapes that only exist in our desires. Her use of photographic techniques is unique, and she knows how to bend them completely to her will,” says museum director Jan Rudolph de Lorm.
A new dimension
The trip to the Rocky Mountains inspires Ammerlaan to create new work: for the first time, she exhibits large-format handmade cyanotypes at Singer Laren. Using this technique, she applies a light-sensitive mixture to paper, places a large negative of a fictional landscape on top, and exposes the whole to sunlight. The light-sensitive part turns blue where the light can pass through the negative, while the dark parts remain white. She then colors the works further in a bath of tea and coffee. The works bear the traces of the creative process—stains, frayed edges, and unpredictable effects—which allow them to depict the grandeur of the landscape while also containing personal inspiration. Her work is layered and goes beyond what is immediately visible; it depicts feelings and memories.
“I find it very special that winning the John & Marine van Vlissingen Art Foundation Prize has given me an inspirational journey, a book, and an exhibition at Singer Laren. This platform is a huge incentive for realizing a long-cherished ambition: to create large works that have visibly passed through my hands,” says Ammerlaan.
Vivian Ammerlaan in the Rocky Mountains. A Dutch artist in North America will be on display at Singer Laren from November 25, 2025, to January 18, 2026.