News item | 09-12-2022 | 21:30
State Secretary Uslu (Culture and Media) wants to get rid of the sometimes difficult relationship that the Netherlands seems to have with culture. In the Pieterskerk in Leiden she spoke the 51e House reading out. In it she called for a revaluation of the important role that art and culture play in everyone’s life: “Heritage, art and culture: they shape who we are. But we don’t always seem to realize that. It is only when people are in danger of losing a part of their heritage, art, custom or tradition that its importance is seen and felt.”
Uslu emphasized the great importance of art and culture: “It gives life to our lives. It has an impact on what we feel, think and what we talk about with each other. Only when we reflect more often on what culture does to us and how it enriches our lives will it receive the appreciation it deserves. If we want to move forward as people and as a society, culture is indispensable.”
In the lecture, Uslu elaborated on Dutch cultural policy over the past 150 years. She also shed light on the current position of culture in society and within government: “It remains strange that we in this country have to convince each other that it is good that we spend money on art and culture. Permanent reflection on the role of the government in art and culture is instructive. But let’s stop with a permanent reflection on it utility of investing in culture. That interest should really be beyond dispute – and should remain unaffected.”
House reading
Since 1972, the Huizinga Lecture has been organized annually in the Pieterskerk in Leiden by the Faculty of Humanities of Leiden University, the Society of Dutch Literature and opinion weekly EW. The name of the lecture is a tribute to the historian and cultural philosopher Johan Huizinga (1872-1945). The lectures have a cultural-historical or a culture- or social-critical character. Past speakers include philosopher Susan Sontag, visual artist Marlene Dumas and writer David van Reybrouck.