DUTCH House, the wildlife garden, bird sanctuary, café and art workshop space in converted farm buildings at Crayke, is linking arms with the Netherlands for an art exchange that coincides with the opening of the Kunsthuis gallery in a barn.

Kunsthuis is Dutch for "art house", signifying the national identity of the work to be exhibited there on a five-weekly rolling programme by well-known contemporary Dutch artists – the new Dutch masters, if you like – from the Limburg region, where gallery co-owner and curator Cecile Creemers lived.

The first exhibition, aptly named Across The North Sea, showcases work by ten Dutch artists, selected by artist Cecile from the suggestions of Dutch gallery Nobert Dabekaussen in Sittard, in an exchange programme in which Cecile will suggest North Yorkshire artists for the Dutch gallery to select for display and sale. Both galleries will show complementary work from their homeland too.

"This concept of exchange is unique for Yorkshire and works both ways providing regional artist from ‘God's own country’ the chance to exhibit abroad in a well-established gallery and offering the people of Yorkshire an exciting changing display of highly talented Dutch artist without having to go abroad," says Cecile.

She and co-owner Sjaak Kastelijn, who opened their centre for nature, art, design and Dutch café delights in 2010, have converted part of the workshop space in the former farm's jam-making building into the new gallery, with work displayed on wooden boxes and tree stumps as well as the walls, or even hanging from the tree branches in the centre, a design that emphasises Dutch House's ecological philosophy.

"It's been a long-desired wish to convert this space," says Cecile, who has been able to increase the seating capacity in the cafe by switching the gallery to the Kunsthuis.

"My background is in art and organising exhibitions, and when we started Dutch House, one of the ideas was to have regular exhibitions of local artists. We've always done this in our café but noticed some visitors didn’t feel free to enjoy the art on display.

"So that's why we've created the separate gallery in one of the barns. It's very spacious with authentic wooden beams and offers a great opportunity to display all sorts of artwork. I'm really excited to kick off with the exhibition Across The North Sea as it contains work from artist living and working in the same region I grew up in."

Do not expect pictures of tulips and windmills, says Cecile.

"Most of the work is contemporary with a strong inspiration taken from the natural world but also the social cohesion between people," she says. "The mix of artist displaying their work is very divers and varies from bronze and raku sculpture, to ceramics, porcelain and paintings in oil and acrylics."

She looks forward to seeing how visitors react to the Dutch work.

"Artists such as Sjer Jacobs, who makes ceramics and paints in oil, have a different approach in technique then what you would see over here in Yorkshire," says Cecile.

"His subject matter is inspired by the behaviour of people and captures the essence of human relations in emotional detail, using a creative well balanced mix of colour, shape and form."

Look out too for works in acrylic, oil, charcoal and sprays by Expressionist artist Noor Tielens, ceramicist Lei Hannen's animals and bronze sculptress Tanja Webbers's "circus of the imagination" pieces, placed alongside the paintings and prints of North Yorkshire artists Stef Mitchell and Ian Mitchell, Jennie Gill's jewellery and Tone Krogh's ceramics.

Opening times are Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm, with parking on site.