This study explores how people interact with art in museums at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Museums often use labels to provide information about the artworks on display. These labels can either...Show moreThis study explores how people interact with art in museums at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Museums often use labels to provide information about the artworks on display. These labels can either give detailed background about the art and its creation or highlight the historical context. In this research, we used eye tracking technology to understand how different types of labels affect the way visitors view and engage with paintings. We studied two groups of visitors: those who are passionate about art and know a lot about it ("art lovers") and those who visit museums for leisure without much prior knowledge ("pleasure seekers"). Our findings show that different types of labels lead to different viewing behaviors. Labels with detailed art history tend to focus visitors' attention on specific parts of the painting, while labels emphasizing historical context encourage visitors to explore the painting more broadly. Interestingly, both types of visitors responded similarly to these labels. These insights are designed to help museums create better exhibits that cater to their audiences, making the museum experience more engaging and educational for everyone.Show less
De restauraties van de Alte Nationalgalerie en het Rijksmuseum hebben de gebouwen waarin de musea zich bevinden, teruggebracht naar de 19e-eeuwse staat. Daarnaast hebben ingrepen in de collectie en...Show moreDe restauraties van de Alte Nationalgalerie en het Rijksmuseum hebben de gebouwen waarin de musea zich bevinden, teruggebracht naar de 19e-eeuwse staat. Daarnaast hebben ingrepen in de collectie en de presentatie ervan plaatsgevonden. Deze scriptie onderzoekt in hoeverre en hoe deze veranderingen nationaal besef bij de bezoekers stimuleren en/of versterken.Show less
In this thesis the Iron Age Italic armament subcollections of two Dutch museums have been investigated. These two museums are the Allard Pierson Museum (APM) in Amsterdam and the Rijksmuseum van...Show moreIn this thesis the Iron Age Italic armament subcollections of two Dutch museums have been investigated. These two museums are the Allard Pierson Museum (APM) in Amsterdam and the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (RMO) in Leiden. The goals of this thesis were to identify each object in the subcollections, analyse the information that came from this research, find out how both subcollections have emerged, discover the use both museums made of their subcollection and to find out what the position of each museum in the ongoing debates on the acquisition and display of unprovenanced antiquities is through the scope of these small subcollections. The results are that both subcollections emerged through relatively similar causes; a combination of coincidence, the supply of these objects on the art market and a somewhat failed acquisition focus. Each museums has used their subcollection differently; the APM always have had many objects on display, grouped together typologically, while the RMO took a small selection from their subcollection and displayed them in more culturally divided exhibitions. While exhibiting these objects both museums had put on display objects that were only barely researched, if they had been researched at all. All objects of both museums that have been acquired after 1970 were bought legally, although it can be argued that some of these acquisitions are not very ethically responsible. Based on the acquisition history of both museums they kept themselves to the ICOM Code of Ethics since the 1990s-2000s, while still displaying the objects without pre-1970 ownership history. Therefore they do not belong to the Renfrew-Brodie side nor to the Boardman-Cuno side of the unprovenanced antiquities debate. They are positioned between these two parties, siding with Refrew and Brodie on the acquisition part, but with Boardman and Cuno on the display of these objects. It must be stressed that because of the small sample it appeared that there were only antiquities with a pre-1970 ownership history in the RMO, while in previous research it was already concluded that the RMO does have unprovenanced antiquities bought after 1970 in its collection. Therefore it is suggested that for comparable future research a bigger sample should be used to avoid similar situations. The final conclusion of this thesis is that both museums have acquired objects with incomplete ownership histories, and put these objects on display having only very limited information on these objects to inform the visitors. Therefore it can be said that they were “Exhibiting the Unknown”.Show less
The banker and 'particulier' Daniel Franken Dz. (Amsterdam 1838-Le Vesinet 1898) seen in the light of his activities as an early art historian, collector, patron of the arts, co-founder of the...Show moreThe banker and 'particulier' Daniel Franken Dz. (Amsterdam 1838-Le Vesinet 1898) seen in the light of his activities as an early art historian, collector, patron of the arts, co-founder of the societies KOG and Vereniging Rembrandt and generous donator of the Rijksmuseum.Show less
This thesis explores the role that museums in the provinces of North and South Holland play in the formation of Dutch national and local identity. The Dutch Revolt and Dutch Golden Age were crucial...Show moreThis thesis explores the role that museums in the provinces of North and South Holland play in the formation of Dutch national and local identity. The Dutch Revolt and Dutch Golden Age were crucial times for the formation of Dutch national identity. Museums play an important role in negotiating historical fact and myth. The first chapter of the thesis explores the themes of "Geography", or how museums define "The Netherlands", "Location and Experience", or how museums create a sense of place, "Chronology" or how museums present the passage of time and "Interactivity" or how museums involve visitor interaction with the exhibits. The second chapter explores the subject of William of Orange as a national hero in the Rijksmusem and compares this with how the Princenhof museum in Delft uses biographical information to humanize William. The third chapter compares how two museums, the Lakenhal in Leiden and Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar, present the subject of the Dutch Revolt. In Alkmaar the museum explores sites of cultural memory of the revolt in several places in the city. In the Lakenhal, memories of the revolt and local hero Pieter Adriansz. van der Werf are renegotiated in light of historical fact. In all these examples, the role that national and local myths play is explored.Show less
