Search - the low countries

Interest in the work of Flemish woodcut artist Frans Masereel has increased substantially in the US and the UK. Masereel biographer Joris van Parys knows how that came about.

The artistic diversity of comic strips in the Low Countries is greater than ever. Yet it is becoming increasingly difficult to earn a living wage. There is still a market for illustrators. But for the makers of comic strips, the possibilit...

In its heyday, Belgium used to be called the Mecca of the comic strip. But its success was due to its Walloon authors. A new generation of Flemish authors is changing all that.

Take a look at our selection of recently translated Dutch literature.

Inspired by an underground mine fire in Pennsylvania, Belgian illustrator Miel Vandepitte created an apocalyptic steampunk western.

'Quaco – My Life in Slavery', the first major graphic novel about the Dutch history of slavery, is now available in English, thanks to modern languages students at the University of Sheffield.

His illustrations reveal the quality of timeless design, particularly the graphic spectacle of his cartoon biographies of Rembrandt and Warhol.

Autobiographical comics are her trademark, but even in a book about the classical philosopher Hipparchia, Barbara Stok arrives at a theme that also resonates in her other work: the need for a conscious and simple life.

Hannes Dedeurwaerder's semi-autobiographical debut novel about his upbringing in the Pentecostal community is an unusual glimpse into an otherwise closed world.

The Dutch author absorbs influences from all major comic book traditions and aims her work at an eminently international audience.

Take a look at our selection of recently translated Dutch-language books for children and young adults.

Twenty-four Flemish writers and poets wrote each other letters during the first weeks of the coronavirus lockdown. This is the correspondence between Jeroen Olyslaegers and Siel Verhanneman.

Why not read a novel by a Dutch or Flemish author this spring? Take a look at our selection.

Covid-19 prompts all museums to close doors. With our selection of recently published books on Flemish or Dutch talent, you bring art into your home.

Our selection of Dutch-language books that have recently been translated into English.

The writer Erik Vlaminck (1954-) uses in a cycle of six novels verbal photography to portray a century of Flanders through the maternal and paternal side of his family. The voice of the common people resounds in all its proverbial pithiness...

‘My novels are always about ordinary people, but by shining an intense light on them they become detached from reality and turn into enigmatic characters. Literature should make people special', according to Jan Siebelink on his website. He...

When Flemish author Dimitri Verhulst (Aalst, 1972) took the literary world by surprise with his tragicomic autobiographical novel The Misfortunates (De helaasheid der dingen) in 2006 he was still a complete unkown. Of the nine books he had...

A travelling exhibition pays tribute to the forgotten black soldiers who helped to liberate the Netherlands during the Second World War.

Herman Brusselmans, the self-proclaimed Handsome Young Jupiter of Flemish literature, is nothing if not prolific. Since his debut in 1982 he has published two books a year with clockwork regularity and his total production now exceeds thirt...

Flanders Literature promotes Dutch-language literature from Flanders across the UK and Ireland through to 2025.

Martin Michael Driessen has already had a successful theatre career as a director, actor and translator. Now, he establishes himself as an important figure in contemporary Dutch writing.

Neel Doff was a writer of Dutch descent living and working in Belgium. Her life reads like an adventure book.

Dutch Writer Marion Bloem (b. 1952) is awarded this year’s Constantijn Huygens Prize (€12,000 euros) for her novels, stories and poems.

The Flemish author Bart Moeyaert has won the 2019 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. The award that is also known in literary circles as the “Nobel Prize for Youth Literature”, was presented at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy.

Writer Aster Berkhof has passed away. For a long time, he was one of the most read authors in Flanders. What should we remember of his oeuvre?

The Dutch bestselling author is back with a novel on European identity, nostalgia and the end of an era.

Dutch Studies students wonder: "Is it appropriate for white students to translate texts about Black experiences of slavery?"

In this interview, the Surinamese writer talks about her texts, her language, and her homeland.

The premise for Anne Eekhout's fourth novel is a good one: to write Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, the author of 'Frankenstein', out of the shadows of her illustrious context.

On 31 March 2020, we celebrated Marga Minco’s 100th birthday. Her oeuvre is an incessant attempt to come to terms with the war past by constantly creating new literary variants of it.

The Dutch writer has received the prestigious PC Hooft Prize 2022 for his extensive and diverse oeuvre. Portrait of a prolific writer with a mission.

In her gripping debut novel ‘Hier is alles veilig’, Anneleen Van Offel tells her story with subtle clues, precise and detailed descriptions, in beautiful language.

Our selection of Dutch-language books that have been translated into English.

Starting this month, Dutch literature will present itself under the title 'New Dutch Writing' at more than 70 festivals and events in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The Ghent-born American inventor of Bakelite brought science and industry closer together.

Join us in bidding goodbye to 2022 with seven of the finest literature stories we published this year that are worth re-reading or listening to again.

In her masterful novel 'Your Story, My Story' Dutch author Connie Palmen gives Ted Hughes a voice.

In her debut novel 'Lam', singer-songwriter Hannelore Bedert paints the portrait of a strong woman, one who has suffered hard knocks but still struggles through life with her head held high.

At a time when the world of printing and typography was still a very male domain, the female graphic designer Fré Cohen occupied a unique place.

Travelling through the British Library’s Dutch-Surinamese Collections via Johan Fretz’s ‘Onder de Paramariboom’.

Here's our selection of Dutch-language books that have recently been translated into English.

Every month, a translator of Dutch into 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?

Our selection of Dutch-language books that have recently been translated into English.

Here's our selection of Dutch-language books that recently have been translated into English.

In her debut novel, Wuck paints a portrait of her hippy parents. The detached tone makes the novel stand out all the more.

Here's our selection of Dutch-language books that recently have been translated into English.

In his debut novel ‘Uiterste dagen’, Ferdinand Lankamp undertakes a search for our motives, which can sometimes be very dark.

Our selection of recent university press publications in English on the Low Countries.

‘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.

In the novel 'Iemand anders', the main character is forced into a different role overnight. This results in an at times very comic tale of a woman searching her way in life once more.

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.

The story of the enslaved boy Quaco, as described by his owner, the Dutch-Scottish army officer John Gabriel Stedman, puts the history of slavery in the Dutch colonies into a multilingual and transatlantic perspective.

What makes you a mother? Fen Verstappen looks for answers in her touching debut novel ‘Moeder af’.

Fifty years ago, Jan Wolkers shook the Netherlands to its foundations with 'Turkish Delight'. Aleid Truijens blushed when she reread his taboo-breaking classic novel.

Our selection of recent university press publications from all over the world that deal with the Low Countries.

Book after book, this young and much-acclaimed Dutch illustrator knows how to surprise.

Reflecting on Leonardo da Vinci’s death, 500 years ago, Luc Devoldere makes a few comments on the notion of the uomo universale.

These Flemish artists and organisations across cultural disciplines have been rewarded with an Ultima for their outstanding contributions.

In the Flemish music industry, pop and rock photographer Alex Vanhee has been a household name for more than 25 years now.

The psychiatry museum in Haarlem reinvented itself as a Museum of the Mind. It earned the institution the 2022 Museum of the Year Award.

In our book 'Standing Tall in Babel. Languages in Europe' (2007) Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk wrote an essay on her mother tongue, Polish. Or is it her father tongue?

Derek Blyth discovers a wedding that changed history, the world’s most complex clock and some of life’s sweet pleasures.

Our selection of Dutch-language books that have recently been translated into English.

With its large collection of works from the Golden Age, Mauritshuis is one of the most important museums in the Netherlands. Important but not without controversy.

Flemish artist Thomas Renwart creates contemporary tapestries resembling botanical gardens.

On a visit to the Flemish city of Aalst, Derek Blyth discovers a Carnival parade that likes to shock, a priest that took on the factory bosses and a utopian library.

Students from two British Universities translated an extract from the second novel of Dutch poet and writer Simone Atangana Bekono.

Utrecht is so much more than a pleasant day trip from Amsterdam. Discover its picturesque canals, lively pub culture, the world’s largest bike parking garage and a cute little rabbit that pops up everywhere in town.

Four hundred years after his birth, Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar is staging the first retrospective of his diverse oeuvre.

Roland Gunst – half Flemish, half Congolese – uses installations, performances, film and video to explore the search for his own identity.

The Low Countries' view of the United States has gradually changed from admiration to sadness and frustration.

Throughout the history of film, the Dutch painter was given many identities.

Irish historian Paul Doolan claims that for many decades, Dutch historians have inadequately investigated the decolonization of Indonesia.

Comparing the Flemish Canon to the Canon of the Netherlands, historian Rolf Falter concludes that both canons are a collection of standalone stories, whereby contemporary political sensibilities and a quite nationalistic approach have influ...

At the beginning of the First World War, one million Belgians fled to the Netherlands. “More so than the Afghans, Ukrainians now are more similar to Belgian refugees back then.”

Confronted with challenging societal, historical and ethical questions, many museums are trying to redefine their role. MSK Director Manfred Sellink makes some proposals.

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