From 1630 to 1654 the Dutch West India Company have succeeded in establishing a colony in the Northeast part of Brazil, then under the dominance of Portugal. Its most preeminent governor, Johan...Show moreFrom 1630 to 1654 the Dutch West India Company have succeeded in establishing a colony in the Northeast part of Brazil, then under the dominance of Portugal. Its most preeminent governor, Johan Maurits van Nassau-Siegen, administered the protectorate through slave and sugar trade, inviting artists, botanists and scientists to document the natives and new inhabitants’ daily life and customs. Johan Maurits’ collection of Brazilian representations and artefacts was mostly donated throughout his life in order to secure him alliances after his return from Brazil and most of the works made during the period are now in European museums, such as the Mauritshuis, in the Netherlands. As art is rarely dissociated from its appreciation, it is vital in the contemporary postcolonial world that we discuss, not only the production of these artworks, but also their display, their reception and more importantly, their role in present day societies. The role of Johan Maurits as a ‘benefactor of the arts’ has been broadly praised by scholarly research, and his effort in documenting the daily life in the ‘New World’ has been commonly seen as the work of a ‘humanist prince’ in the tropics. Nonetheless, I argue that precisely because of this mythification of Dutch Brazil, historiography has failed so far – with a few exceptions – in critically analysing the representations produced during the Dutch occupation. By considering these works as true masterpieces only possible because of the effort of a magnificent patron, the relationship between the artist, his commissioner and the object is overlooked. The social and hierarchical interpretations of what is depicted give room to formalist approaches, and the impact of this fruitful production in the imaginary of a European audience is again ignored. This thesis intends to analyse these representations and their impact on the understanding and the construction of an identity of Brazilian society as viewed by Europeans. Taking Frans Post's View of Itamaracá Island (1637) as a case study, it envisions to connect the postcolonial debate of representation with the museum practice in the contemporary and discuss the role of institutions as bearers of colonial legacies.Show less
De twee slagen bij de Guararapesbergen in 1648 en 1649 bleken een omslag in de geschiedenis van de WIC-kolonie in Nederlands-Brazilië. Het beleid omtrent die twee slagen van de Hoge Raad ofwel de...Show moreDe twee slagen bij de Guararapesbergen in 1648 en 1649 bleken een omslag in de geschiedenis van de WIC-kolonie in Nederlands-Brazilië. Het beleid omtrent die twee slagen van de Hoge Raad ofwel de Nederlandse regering in Nederlands-Brazilië is nog weinig onderzocht. Wel hield Van Hoboken er een negatieve mening op na met betrekking tot het beleid dat de Raad had gevoerd. L'Honore-Naber stelde al in 1925 dat hoe meer wij weten over het beleid van deze regering, hoe positiever ons oordeel - waarschijnlijk - zou zijn. Den Heijer herhaalde dat in 2005. Naar aanleiding daarvan is het beleid van de Raad in bredere zin bekeken door in de periode van de beide slagen het gehele beleid van de Raad in kaart te brengen aan de hand van de Dagelijkse en de Secrete Notulen. Doordat de hulp uit de Republiek te beperkt was en er een constant tekort was van middelen en troepen, kan er verklaard worden waarom de Hoge Raad er niet in kon slagen de kolonie van haar ondergang te behoeden. Zo beaamt deze scriptie de veronderstelling van L'Honoré-Naber en Den Heijer. Daarnaast blijkt de interpretatie van Van Hoboken over het beleid van de Raad te negatief en niet altijd in overeenstemming met de Notulen. Aangezien Boxer in zijn werk zich ook baseerde op Van Hoboken, voegt deze scriptie een nieuwe kijk op de Raad toe aan de geschiedschrijving over Nederlands-Brazilië.Show less
