Series
literature
literature
Marieke Ornelis
3 min reading time
Marieke Ornelis - Oil on canvas
We join Marieke Ornelis as she looks at Portrait of a Young Woman, with ‘Puck’ the Dog, painted by Marie-Thérèse Schwartz
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
5 min reading time
'De Afwijking' by Dries Muus: Faustian Drama on and off the Football Pitch
De Afwijking by debutant Dries Muus is a beautiful coming-of-age novel against the backdrop of an urban football environment.
Series
Young Writers on Invisible Labour
literature
Roger Van de Velde
9 min reading time
The Instructions of Prometheus. A Short Story by Roger Van de Velde
The author was known for his collections of short stories written while he was interred in psychiatric institutions.
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
5 min reading time
‘We Are Light’, the Prize-Winning Debut Novel by Gerda Blees: Circling above Good and Evil
A simple press report about a death in a commune inspired Blees to write her debut novel.
First Book
literature
Phaedra Derhore
1 min reading time
Phaedra Derhore - Good Boy
Phaedra Derhore drew a short comic in response to the painting Still Life with Game and a Greek Stele: Allegory of Autumn by Georgius Jacobus Johannes van Os from 1818.
literature
Elise Tumba Kiambi
1 min reading time
Elise Tumba Kiambi - A Farmer’s Legacy
Eighteen young authors have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Elise Tumba Kiambi wrote a poem in response to Andreas Schelfhout’s painting Farmyard.
Friday Verses
literature
Daan de Jager
3 min reading time
Daan de Jager - Farewell: Van Gogh
Eighteen young authors have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. We join Daan de Jager as he looks at a self-portrait by Vincent van Gogh from 1887.
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
5 min reading time
‘Was’ by Jilt Jorritsma: Twin Peaks in the Frisian Polder
In Was (Wax), debut author Jilt Jorritsma eschews linear time, constructing a mysterious and fascinating story.
Series
Young Voices on Slavery
literature
Marte Hoogenboom
3 min reading time
Marte Hoogenboom - Behold, Yourself
Eighteen young authors have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Marte Hoogenboom wrote a dialogue in response to a painting and a sculpture.
arts
Robin Goudsmit
3 min reading time
Robin Goudsmit - Whiteness: My Manual
Eighteen young authors have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Robin Goudsmit wrote a manual to accompany a painting.
arts
Sophia Blyden
3 min reading time
Sophia Blyden - Empty Space
Eighteen young authors have brought nineteenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum to life. Sophia Blyden wrote her text in response to a sculpture of Lorenzo Bartolini.
literature
Tom Christiaens
1 min reading time
These Books Have a Chance of Winning the Vondel Prize
The Vondel Prize is a biennial prize for the best book translation into English of a Dutch literary or cultural-historical work. The winner receives € 5,000.
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
6 min reading time
‘De Hotelgids’ by Loes Wijnhoven: A Millennial Looking for the Meaning of Life
Loes Wijnhoven has written a funny debut novel about a millennial living life passing from hotel to hotel.
literature
Henk Pröpper
12 min reading time
The Unrelenting World-Picture of Writer Willem Frederik Hermans
They may not paint a cheerful picture of man and the world, but the books of Willem Frederik Hermans are worth re-reading, says writer Henk Pröpper.
literature
Tessa Leuwsha
13 min reading time
Astrid H. Roemer: ‘Dutch Will Slowly but Surely Disappear From Suriname’
In this interview, the Surinamese writer talks about her texts, her language, and her homeland.
literature
Iduna Paalman
8 min reading time
Poetry That Wants to Live
One hundred years ago, Paul van Ostaijen wrote his famous poetry collection 'Bezette Stad' (Occupied City). Dutch poet Iduna Paalman finds in the occupied city of Van Ostaijen the blueprint for the infected city of today.
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
6 min reading time
‘De hemel is altijd paars’ by Sholeh Rezazadeh: From the Outside Looking In
This debut is a dreamy novel about the love of trees and the loneliness of surviving in a new country.
literature
Dirk Vandenberghe
5 min reading time
‘Knikkerkoning’ by Kira Wuck: Detached Tale of a Wild Life
In her debut novel, Wuck paints a portrait of her hippy parents. The detached tone makes the novel stand out all the more.
literature
Reinier Salverda
7 min reading time
‘Hark, There’s a Quite New Sound’. Herman Gorter’s ‘May’ Finally Translated Into English
After 132 years, Gorter's masterpiece has finally been published in English, even in two versions.
literature
Paul Vincent
3 min reading time
Translating Herman Gorter's 'May': A Labour of Love
Paul Vincent on his experience in translating Herman Gorter's most famous poem 'May'.
