www.the-low-countries.com
High Road to Culture in Flanders and the Netherlands
‘In God we trust,’ it says on every United States dollar bill. ‘In Flemish flax we also trust,’ it might add.
Indonesia’s independence in 1949 did not mark the end of Dutch influence. Many Dutch colonial structures remained in use.
A translator from Dutch to English gives literary tips by answering two questions: which translated book by a Flemish or Dutch author should everyone read? And, which book absolutely deserves an English translation?
The company that "bought" Manhattan was based in a handsome classical building that is still standing on the Herenmarkt in the heart of Amsterdam.
In his novel about a Flemish Nazi collaborator, bestselling author Stefan Hertmans presents a sharp image of life under German occupation, which he links perceptively to the personal history of his characters.
On a visit to the Flemish city of Halle, Derek Blyth discovers a miraculous statue, a forgotten Flemish artist and an intriguing street art trail.
Should we consider the increasing anglicization of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders a good or bad evolution?
‘Triptych of the Last Supper’ by Dieric Bouts is one of the hundred masterpieces of early modern Dutch and Flemish art in the CODART Canon.
A new exhibition and publication zoom in on the wartime memories of the internationally award-winning Belgian filmmaker and animator Raoul Servais (1928-2023).
In the early 1400s, an English army with longbows, a mad dog and a treacherous bridge would once again make the future of the Low Countries uncertain.
Our selection of recent university press publications in English on the Low Countries.
While Freemasonry in the Netherlands mainly looks at the Anglo-American tradition, their Belgian Brothers and Sisters adhere to the French or ‘liberal’ tradition.
‘Postcolonial Mirror’ and ‘New Colonial Reading List’ are two new important books on Dutch East Indies literature. Both editions aim at a complete revision of the existing image.
The exhibition focuses on slavery in the Dutch colonial era, from the 17th to the 19th century – on three continents and in the Netherlands itself.
Native speakers of Dutch should adopt a more tolerant and empathetic attitude towards non-native speakers, argues Christopher Joby, a Dutch Studies scholar from Norwich.
Book covers are adorned with titles of all shapes and sizes. Author Anne van den Dool looked for trends, delving also into her own book-title-history.
Many a filmmaker has been inspired by Vermeer's work. A story about the impossible love between master and maid.
Johannes Vermeer was everything but impulsive. The lab research that preceded the Vermeer exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, shows that the artist constantly adjusted his compositions during the painting process.
This week's Friday Verses are written by Rob van Essen. We translated his poem ‘Velden’.
In Vermeer's paintings of women writing letters, art historian Gerdien Verschoor hears their pens scratching the paper in a world that is otherwise dead silent.
On a visit to the oldest city in Belgium, Derek Blyth discovers a Roman road sign, a lost river and a hoard of antique hunters.
Eighteen young writers from Flanders and the Netherlands have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Sixtine Bérard wrote a poem to accompany a flask.
‘The Dollhouse of Sara Rothé’ is one of the hundred masterpieces of early modern Dutch and Flemish art in the CODART Canon.
This week's Friday Verses are written by Els Moors, who was appointed National Poet of Belgium from 2018 until 2020. We translated her poem ‘everything’s sold or given away’.
Eighteen young writers from Flanders and the Netherlands have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Thom Wijenberg shows us the 'Diorama of a Du, Dance Celebration on the Plantation', made by Gerrit Schouten.
The Dutch artist and cycle activist Mapije de Wit encourages her fellow cyclists to sing while cycling.
Hidden in the nineteenth-century park behind the world's most famous tulip garden Keukenhof is the only food art museum in the Netherlands.
