Scheringa Museum of Realist Art

The Scheringa Museum of Realist Art was a museum located in Spanbroek, North Holland, the Netherlands, dedicated to around five hundred works of 20th-century art, primarily focusing on realism and magic realism. Established to house the private collection of Dirk and Baukje Scheringa-De Vries, it opened in February 1997 and was originally named the Frisia Museum. The institution operated until 2009, when the bankruptcy of its owner, DSB Bank, forced its closure and the seizure of its collection.

The museum opened in February 1997 in the former Lidwina domestic science school in Spanbroek to exhibit the art collection of Dirk and Baukje Scheringa-De Vries. On July 2, 2005, the institution changed its name from the Frisia Museum to the Scheringa Museum of Realist Art, referencing the DSB Bank founder. On May 1, 2009, an armed robbery occurred, resulting in the theft of Salvador Dali's Adolescence and Tamara de Lempicka's La Musicienne, which were recovered in July 2016 through the intervention of art detective Arthur Brand. The museum's demise was triggered by the financial collapse of the DSB empire. On October 21, 2009, DSB Beheer was declared bankrupt. The preceding night, a bailiff acting on orders from ABN AMRO seized the collection, which served as collateral for a 32 million euro mortgage credit required for a new building project. On November 17, 2009, DS Art B.V., the collection's owner, was also declared bankrupt, ending the museum and resulting in the dismissal of its sixteen staff members. The Dutch Minister of Culture, Ronald Plasterk, and the Rembrandt Association both expressed a desire to keep the collection intact without using public funds. The collection eventually passed to Deutsche Bank, which attempted to sell it to an undisclosed individual for 14 million euro. An Amsterdam court halted the sale in 2011, ruling the price too low. In March 2012, Hans Melchers purchased approximately one thousand works by Dutch artists from the collection for around 16 million euro.

The collection comprised paintings and other art objects in the styles of realism and magic realism. It encompassed a broad range of 20th-century and contemporary works, with a particular strength in Dutch realists and magic realists, including Carel Willink, Charley Toorop, Jan Mankes, Dick Ket, and Pyke Koch. The holdings also featured international surrealism and magic realism, alongside post-war and figure art by prominent global artists.

The museum held signature works by Dutch realists such as Jan Mankes, Charley Toorop, Edgar Fernhout, Jan van Tongeren, Johan Mekkink, Johan Ponsioen, Sal Meijer, Ferdinand Erfmann, Paul Huf, and Fong Leng. Magic realism was represented by Pyke Koch, Raoul Hynckes, Wim Schuhmacher, Dick Ket, and Carel Willink. International holdings included pieces by Rene Magritte, Paul Delvaux, Giorgio de Chirico, Alexander Kanoldt, Tamara de Lempicka, and Tobeen. Post-war and figure art featured works by Lucian Freud, Marlene Dumas, Fernando Botero, Jean Rustin, Co Westerik, and Jan Beutener. Two notable stolen and later recovered works were Salvador Dali's Adolescence and Tamara de Lempicka's La Musicienne.

The museum was initially housed in the former Lidwina domestic science school in Spanbroek. In the summer of 2004, four Dutch architects were commissioned to design a new building in the neighboring village of Opmeer to provide more space for permanent and temporary exhibitions, lectures, and events. The commission, won by Herman Zeinstra of the Amsterdam firm Atelier Zeinstra van der Pol, required a clear, natural building that would harmonize with the art and the garden. Construction on the Opmeer building progressed to 80 percent completion before the contractor halted work on October 16, 2009, due to non-payment by the client, DSB Stadion BV. The unfinished Opmeer building stood vacant for years before being sold at auction on September 22, 2017, for nearly 950,000 euro. In 2021, a real estate developer purchased the structure to convert it into a residential care facility. The original Spanbroek building is slated for demolition in 2026 to make way for housing.

The original museum in Spanbroek is closed and scheduled for demolition. The Dutch portion of its former collection, purchased by Hans Melchers, has been on public display since the spring of 2015 at Museum MORE, located in the former town hall of Gorssel in the province of Gelderland. The Carel Willink portion of the collection is housed separately at Castle Ruurlo.