Amsterdam has the most to offer of all municipalities in the Netherlands when it comes to culture. Maastricht and Leeuwarden are in second and third place respectively, according to the new Atlas for Municipalities presented in Leeuwarden on Wednesday afternoon, Het Parool reports.
Among the provinces, Groningen has the biggest cultural offering, followed by Zeeland and Noord-Holland. Flevoland is last on the ranking.
The Dutch government is allocating an annual 80 million euros a year for culture education, according to the memorandum Culture in an open society that Minister Ingrid van Engelshoven of Education, Culture and Science presented on Monday. Her ambition is to make sure that the cultural sector "flourishes", NOS reports.
A total of 950 thousand people visited a monument on Open Monument Day over the weekend, somewhat less than last year. According to the organizers, this can be attributed to the rainy weather, NOS reports.
For Open Monument Day, over 4 thousand monuments that are usually closed to the public, were open for visitors free of charge. Major attractions included the Martini Church in Groningen, the Cereol factory in Utrecht and the Ridderzaal in The Hague.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is paying a short work-visit to the Netherlands on Tuesday. He will spend half the day in The Hague, where he will meet members of the cabinet, the Dutch King and Queen and the Indian community in the Netherlands. The goal for this visit is to strengthen ties between the two countries, the Telegraaf reports.
The PvdA wants it to be possible for people to retire at the age of 65 if that is what they want. The party is calling for a flexible retirement age in its election program
D66 leader Alexander Pechtold wants the next government to address inequality in society, he wrote in the foreword of his party's 232 page election program, which he presented on Friday. According to him, it is time to invest in "equal chances", NU.nl reports.
The Anne Frank House is both the favorite cultural institution and the institution with the strongest cultural brand in the Netherlands. Amsterdam science center Nemo is the most welcoming museum in the country, according to the annual culture sector brands study by Hendrik Beerda Brand Consultancy.
The Groninger Museum welcomed its 100 thousandth visitor to the “David Bowie Is” exhibition currently on display at the Groningen institution, according to newswire ANP. The museum extended its opening hours to cope with an increase in interest after the singer’s death in January.
Museums are having to find different ways to fund exhibitions. Companies are hesitant to sponsor after the financial crisis that started in 2008.
Rotterdam has notched up fifth place on the LonelyPlanet website’s Top 10 Cities list. The city was hailed for its futuristic architecture, nightlife, drinking and dining venues, and the all-round innovative developments of culture and design incorporated by the city.
Sources speaking anonymously to newspaper De Telegraaf blame Dutch Minister of Culture, Jet Bussemaker, for not securing a deal that would bring two large Rembrandt portraits to the Netherlands in a 160 million euro deal with the Rothschild family in France. They accuse the minister of speaking bilaterally with her French counterpart about a joint purchase of the paintings in secret and on her own accord.
France has committed 80 million euros in a bid to buy one of the two Rembrandt paintings that were conditionally sold to the Rijksmuseum for a combined 160 million. The museum orchestrated the purchase with 80 million euros from the Dutch government with the goal of bringing the marriage portraits of Maerten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit back to the Netherlands.
Fewer people are speaking the Zeelandic language in the communities surrounding the southwestern parts of The Netherlands. In the past, one out of five children spoke the language, today that ratio has dropped to one of seven.
Although the Late Rembrandt exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam was quite busy, there is still room for more, according to director Wim Pijbes. "There were times when it was very busy, but we did not reach the hourly maximum number of visitors in the halls," Pijbes said to the Parool. "So there is still room for growth."
The cabinet must spend an extra 29.5 million euros on culture annually. The emergency aid of the Tropenmuseum (Tropical Museum) must be added to the budget for museums and extra money must be made available for an orchestra for light music, such as the Metropole Orchestra.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Affairs Lodewijk Asscher was scheduled to visit Morocco on Tuesday to learn about combating radicalization. Morocco plays a central role in fighting North Africa extremism, and Minister Asscher will discuss efforts with his Moroccan counterpart and experts on integration and radicalization.
Sales of the national Museum Card sales saw an impressive rise in 2014 of about ten percent. Over 100,000 more Museum Cards were sold in comparison to the year before.
The Netherlands has the third highest rate of cultural attendance in Europe. This includes museum tours taken, orchestras attended and theaters visited.The only countries in Europe to have a higher rate are Denmark and Sweden.
PVV-leader Geert Wilders has spoken about his party's plans to construct a Zwarte Piet law which, if it passes, would oblige municipalities to make sure that Zwarte Piet is specifically black during public appearances, such as the Sinterklaas entry tour, the Algemeen Dagblad reports.
As many as 500,000 people visited the 37th edition of the Uitmarkt across Amsterdam last weekend, with 2,000 different artists performing on the Leidseplein and Museumplein. Roughly the same number of attendees dropped in on the festival last year, reported broadcaster AT5.
The municipality of Amsterdam will give 6500 teenagers living in poverty in the city €150 in clothing vouchers. A €90 allowance will also be made available for these disenfranchised youths to take courses in the areas of sport, art and culture.
The enigmatic painting "St. Praxedis" has long mystified art experts, but now this riddle seems to be solved. It really belongs to Johann Vermeer, as "DNA tests" carried out by experts of Christie's auction have recently shown.
Northern Randstad cities as places to live seem to be growing in popularity compared to the rest of The Netherlands. According to the newest edition of the annual Atlas for Municipalities, presented today, Amsterdam and Utrecth are among the most attractive cities on the list.
More than a thousand people have come to see the exhibition of photographs taken by Heleen van Royen in the Letterkundig museum in The Hague. Since the exhibition opened on the 16th of May, the museum announces that Van Royen's series of selfies is causing quite a stir, Omroep West reports.
