University of Groningen and Rijksmuseum create new professorship for Museums, Heritage and Religion
Valika Smeulders appointed associate professor commencing 1 October 2024
Publication date: 01 October 2024 - 08:07
The University of Groningen and the Rijksmuseum have formed a partnership. These two public institutions have established a new associate professorship concerned with museums, heritage and religion. Dr Valika Smeulders, head of the Rijksmuseum’s History Department, will take up her position as associate professor on 1 October 2024.
The aim of the new Museums, Heritage and Religion professorship, part of the University of Groningen’s faculty of Religion, Culture and Society, is to gather knowledge on the Rijksmuseum collection and on heritage that, in the broadest sense, is passed on from generation to generation within society.
Recent years have seen a great increase in the level of attention given to a range of aspects of history that had long been neglected. They include colonial history, women’s contributions to society and the arts and sciences, and the provenance of museum collections. The University of Groningen and the Rijksmuseum have created this professorship to expand this area of study and to increase the numbers of people involved in research and presentations relating to specific aspects of history and the ways in which they are interrelated.
The widening of our perceptions of the Netherlands and the world is raising new questions – questions about broad representation of class, the relationship between urban and rural areas, and the role of religion in how we see ourselves. These developments in contemporary practice are now securely anchored in the academic world through this professorship, a position that I will be proud to occupy.
Valika Smeulders
The Rijksmuseum is delighted with this innovative expansion of our collaborative activities. Culture, society and religion go hand in hand, in both the Rijksmuseum collection and the museum itself. The creation of this professorship and the appointment of Valika Smeulders to the position of associate professor will lead to fresh perspectives on these subjects.
Taco Dibbits, Director of the Rijksmuseum
There is a long tradition at the University of Groningen of devoting thought to material and immaterial forms of heritage. Our partnership will incorporate in this work the most famous museum collection in the Netherlands.
Jouke de Vries, President of the Board of the University of Groningen
