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Culture and media Culture and media The Cultural Section of the Royal Netherlands Embassy , Islamabad promotes cultural exchanges between the Netherlands and Pakistan. It serves as a link between the cultural organizations in the Netherlands and in Pakistan. It acts as an information resource on the Netherlands ( policies, economy, monarchy, health, agriculture, environment, social services and Fellowships…)
The cultural sectionThe Cultural Section endorses the International Cultural Policy of the Netherlands under the joint direction of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (  www.minbuza.nl) and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science ( www.minocw.nl). It serves as a conduit between the Dutch and Pakistani art worlds, promoting Dutch arts and artists in Pakistan and encouraging and facilitating cultural cooperation and exchange. The work is focused on the following disciplines: Architecture, Design, Contemporary Visual Arts, Dance, Music, Theater, Film, Photography, New Media, Literature and Cultural Heritage and Old Masters. Specifically, the work can be described as follows:
However, the Cultural Section does not promote individual artists or performing companies, does not book performances or exhibitions, does not broker contracts or deals and does not fund Pakistani artists wishing to perform or exhibit in the Netherlands. For specific questions you can contact:
Or email : nlgovisl@comsats.net.pk
The Media in the NetherlandsFreedom of expression is a cornerstone of the Dutch democratic system. Both in relation to broadcasting and to the press, the Dutch government pursues policies to maintain the independence and plural character of the media. The Media Act clearly specifies that broadcasting organizations are free to determine the nature and content of their programs. The government may exert no influence over the content of reporting in the press. It is, however, obliged to create the conditions necessary to enable the media to fulfill the crucial roles they play in keeping the public informed. The PressThe Dutch press is mainly comprised of daily newspapers, local newspapers and magazines. There are four major national newspapers: De Telegraaf (circulation 756,000), the Algemeen Dagblad (400,000), De Volkskrant (361,000) and the NRC/Handelsblad (271,000). In addition, many regional newspapers frequently have a considerable readership. Local newspapers usually appear twice or thrice weekly and play an important role in the smaller municipalities as they keep people informed of local news. Practically every Dutch household subscribes to a daily newspaper.The Press Fund was established in 1974 to provide financial assistance to ailing newspapers or magazines. The assistance may consist of credits and/or grants and is usually temporary; the paper or magazine is expected to operate under its own steam again within a reasonable time period. The Dutch dailies are in the hands of a small number of publishing houses, the largest being the Perscombinatie, with a 31% share of the market, followed by De Telegraaf with 25%, VNU with 18% and Wegener with 15%. There are many different types of magazines: news weeklies, popular magazines, radio and television guides, and special interest magazines. The main news weeklies are Vrij Nederland, HP/De Tijd and Elsevier. Although their readership is fairly small, they are relatively influential as they provide commentary on the news. The popular magazines have a much wider readership: the women's magazines Libelle and Margriet, for example, have a circulation of 750,000 and 525,000 respectively. The radio and television guides also have a wide readership; in addition to information on programming they contain articles on more general issues. Radio and TelevisionThe Netherlands has had a a public broadcasting system since the 1920s; programs are provided by broadcasting associations representing a clearly identifiable social or religious ideal or grouping. As such, the system is unique. The broadcasting associations -- AVRO (general), NCRV (Protestant), VARA (social-democratic), KRO (Catholic), TROS (general), VPRO (progressive), and EO (Protestant) -- all have five year licenses which will expire in the year 2000. They are responsible for providing a complete range of programs, encompassing information, the arts, education and entertainment. All of the broadcasting associations work together in the Netherlands Broadcasting System (NOS) and the NOS Program Foundation which largely broadcasts arts, child and ethnic minority programs. In addition, churches, religious and other organizations, political parties, government agencies and educational broadcasting companies are entitled to air time on the public system.The Netherlands has three national television channels and five radio stations; there are, in addition, regional radio stations in every province, a limited number of regional television stations, and 400 local radio stations. Public broadcasting is funded from radio and television licenses and radio advertising. Commercials are broadcast between programs; advertising during programs is not permitted on public channels. Commercial broadcasting was first introduced in the Netherlands in 1992. Dutch-language commercial companies include RTL 4 and 5 (which broadcast in Dutch from Luxembourg), Veronica, SBS6, TV10 and the Music Factory. Practically all Dutch homes are linked to the cable network which offers a wide range of Dutch and foreign commercial and public viewing. Channels available on the cable include the Belgian BRTN, the German ARD and ZDF, the BBC, the French TV5, CNN and MTV. Radio Netherlands"Radio Netherlands" is an independent station broadcasting radio and television programs throughout the world for Dutch people living abroad and foreigners interested in the Netherlands and Dutch culture. The service broadcasts programs daily in Dutch, English, Spanish, Bahasa Indonesian and Papiamento. The radio programs, which feature news and current affairs, sports reports and weather forecasts, are broadcast on the short and medium wave, on local FM wavelengths, and by satellite. Television programs are sold to foreign broadcasting companies. The Radio Netherlands Training Centre, part of the world service, trains program makers from developing countries and is involved in cooperative projects throughout the world.The artsThe arts are represented in all their forms and at the very highest level in the Netherlands. World famous museums throughout the Netherlands house fine collections which attract many visitors every year. Lovers of theatre and music can choose from an enormous variety of concerts and performances, and innovations are encouraged. Arts festivals are held every year. The Holland Festival, held annually in June/July, stages a wealth of productions from at home and abroad. Architecture and design, film and literature are encouraged to find new ways. Libraries of the highest standards are open to the general public.The government and private enterprises focus on promoting the quality of Dutch arts. By allocating grants, it encourages the production and purchase of works of art. Various councils representing the arts world advise and assist the government in its efforts. Visual artsThe Netherlands has a long tradition of painting. The works of Dutch masters such as Rembrandt, Frans Hals, Vermeer, Van Gogh and Mondrian are known throughout the world.Artists are eligible for a wide range of grants and scholarships. In order to encourage people to buy arts, the government used to subsidize purchases from galleries. It also purchases works of art itself, via museums and the Netherlands Office for Fine Arts. Contemporary Dutch artists are usually well represented at foreign events such as the Biennale in Venice and the Documenta in Kassel. Karel Apple and Corneille, both members of the Cobra movement and still very active, are the best known postwar artists. Other contemporary artists include Ger van Elk, Jan Dibbets, Peter Struyken, Rob Scholte, Marthe Roling and Marlene Dumas. DesignPolicy on design is closely linked to art policy, the guiding principle being that graphic design, industrial design and applied art in its various forms is largely responsible for the visual quality of our environment. The government therefore seeks to enhance the quality of design and encourages people to take an interest in it. Although Dutch design is influenced by international movements, there is a recognizable Dutch style in which simplicity, clarity and austerity are central. To most, a characteristic example is the work of the members of "De Stijl", a group of designers and artists who exerted a great influence on the Dutch art scene in the 1920s. Piet Mondrian, Theo van Doesburg and Gerrit Rietveld especially are among the best-known representatives of this movement. Rietveld's famous armchair may be regarded as typifying the systematic, geometric approach to design. Government commissions have played an important role in the development of postwar design. The PTT (the Dutch post office and telecommunications company) took pioneering steps in commissioning prominent Dutch designers such as Piet Zwart and Jan van Toorn to design many of its stamps. Dutch banknotes were also regarded as masterpieces of design. R.D.E. Oxenaar's designs for the fifty guilder notes are famous for their powerful composition inspired by scenes from nature. A new series of Banknotes have also been designed by Jaap Drupsteen. The Design Institute which has been located in Amsterdam since 1993, is responsible for promotional activities and for bringing representatives of the different disciplines into contact with one another.
TheatreThe Netherlands Theatre Institute maintains a documentation centre on the Dutch performing arts. The Institute promotes the work of Dutch playwrights, directors and actors abroad.There are a large number of big and small theatre groups, engaged in developing new forms of theatre, often combining music, mime and new media techniques. Most theatre groups perform in Dutch, which makes it difficult for them to take their productions abroad. This does not apply to groups performing alternative forms of theatre. The Netherlands has three major dance groups: the National Ballet in Amsterdam, the Netherlands Dance Theatre (NDT) in The Hague and the Scapino Ballet in Rotterdam. The National Ballet's repertoire consists mainly of classical ballets, but attention is also devoted to the works of 20th century choreographers such as the American Balanchine and the Dutch Van Dantzig, Van Manen and Van Schayk. The works of Jiri Kylian, the artistic director of the Netherlands Dance Theatre, largely determine the NDT's program. The NDT has built up an international reputation and frequently performs abroad. The Scapino Ballet originally performed largely for youthful audiences. In the past few years, however, the company has turned its attention to contemporary dance. There are also a large number of smaller dance groups which stage largely modern dance productions in smaller theatres. MusicMusic can be enjoyed in all its forms in the Netherlands. Apart form classical music, performances of modern music, jazz and pop music attract large audiences. Government policy takes all these different forms of music into account and they are all eligible for funding or grants.
Jazz and improvised music are highly popular in the Netherlands and live jazz is performed weekly at the many internationally renowned venues to be found in the Randstad especially. Pop music is equally well represented. Golden Earring, Normaal, BZN and the Nits, as well as "The Scene" and "Lois Lane" play to full houses all over the country. Newcomers are Kane, Di-rect, Anouk, Ilse de Lange & DJ's as Iinkie XL and Tiesto. Pop festivals, of which Pinkpop is one of the most famous, are organized throughout the year.
ArchitectureIn the field of architecture and urban development, the Netherlands has a tradition to keep up. Its seventeenth and eighteenth century canal houses are world famous, while its twentieth century urban development schemes such as architect and urban developer Berlage's Amsterdam South project and the new buildings in the centre of Rotterdam, also attract attention. Modern architecture in the Netherlands manifests itself in a great variety of ways, the controversial nature of many of which may be interpreted as a sign of vitality. Besides functional architecture involving houses and office buildings, there is sufficient scope for experimentation. New towns such as Almere and Zeewolde, and growth centres such as Zoetermeer and Amersfoort, provide young architects with the opportunity to experiment. Aldo van Eyck, Herman Hetzberger, Wim Quist, Pi de Bruyn, Rem Koolhaas and Jo Coenen are well known contemporary architects. Coenen designed the building in which the Dutch institute for Architecture and Town planning in Rotterdam is housed. This institute supplies information on architecture and urban development. The Berlage Institute in Amsterdam runs workshops for talented architects from the Netherlands and abroad.
FilmThe Netherlands has a small scale film industry, with ten to fifteen feature films being produced every year. Some of these films such as Paul Verhoeven's Turks Fruit and De Vierde Man, and Dick Maas' De Lift and Flodder have been well received abroad. In 1987, Fons Rademakers received an Academy Award for his film De Aanslag (The Assault) as best foreign language film, in 1992 followed by Antonia and in 1998 by Karakter. Successful Dutch Film makers often go to work abroad. Robocop and Basic Instinct made Verhoeven famous. The Dutch film excels in the field of Children's films. The Netherlands has produced a number of very good documentary filmmakers. Joris Ivens won international acclaim as early as the 1920s, while Bert Haanstra who received an Oscar for his film "Glas" in 1958 and Johan van der Keuken whose "Face Value" was acclaimed best documentary during the 1992 Utrecht Film Festival are two of the most prominent postwar documentary filmmakers. Dutch animated films have also reached a high standard and Borge Ring received an Oscar for his film Anna en Bella in 1986.
LiteratureThe Netherlands has a rich literary heritage and has produced writers worthy of international acclaim. Poetry is a particularly popular genre: only Japan and Iceland publish more anthologies each year. Translation slowly unfolds Dutch Literature to other cultures. In the Middle Ages, Dutch literature was part of a broad Western European tradition, with works including Arthurian romances such as Floris en de Blancefloer and Karel ende Elegast and the allegory Van den Vos Reynaerde (Reynard the Fox). Erasmus was the major Dutch representative of sixteenth Century humanism and his Lof der Zotheid (The Praise of Folly) has been translated into many languages. The Bible was also translated into Dutch in the 17th century, and the publication of De Statenbijbel the authorized version in 1637 may be regarded as a milestone in the development of the Dutch language. Dutch literature flourished in the 17th century, also called Golden Age, with writers such as Vondel, Hooft, Huygens and Bredero. Vondel's Lucifer is still performed in various countries. Multatuli was a major 19th century writer, whose novel Max Havelaar was indictment of Dutch rule in the then Netherlands East Indies (present-day Indonesia). In the late 19th century, the impressionist "Beweging van Tachtig" literary movement produced writers such as Willem Kloos, Lodewijk van Deyssel, Frederik van Deden and Herman Gorter. Louis Couperus, writing in the same period, is famous for his novels of bourgeois Hague Society. Postwar literature has been dominated by the three novelist Willem Fredrik Hermans, Harry Mulisch and Gerard van het Reve. The war plays an important role in their earlier work. Hella Haasse, Jan Wolkers, Cees Nooteboom and Maarten't Hart are other major postwar writers. A.F.T. van der Heijden's series "De Tandeloze Tijd" made him into one of the most prominent writers of the eighties. The Association for the Production and Translation of Dutch Literature plays an important role in propagating Dutch literature abroad. The Association's aim is to ensure a wide variety of high quality original and translated Dutch literary works. The works of an increasing number of Dutch authors are being translated into other languages. The government of Belgium and the Netherlands are making increasing efforts towards integrating in the field of language and literature and to this end they have founded the Dutch language union.
LibrariesThe The public libraries are very popular, especially among young people: around 60% of the under 17s are members. Membership is, indeed, free up to the age of 16. The public libraries own an estimated total of more than 41.5 million books. Most municipalities of more than 30,000 residents have their own public library, totalling some 1,200 libraries. Smaller municipalities are largely served by mobile libraries, of which there are approximately 100 stopping at some 2,000 locations. The public libraries and mobile libraries together serve 4.3 million registered borrowers. The public libraries are mainly funded by the municipal provincial authorities. Authors and publishers receive lending right fees. Apart from books, the public libraries also stock music cassettes, compact discs, films and videos. For blind and partially sighted people there are recorded and braille books. There are five special libraries for the blind, to which over 40,000 people subscribed in 1991. Students and researchers can use about twenty academic libraries, most of them connected to universities. The Amsterdam University Library is the largest with over 3.5 million volumes. The university libraries of Leiden (founded in 1575), Groningen (1614), Utrecht (1636) and the Deventer city library (1560) are among the oldest academic libraries. Almost all university libraries are financed by the Ministry of Education and Science.
ArchivesIn addition to libraries, a great number of archives are maintained by government departments, companies and private organizations. The National Record Office, at which the archives of government organisations are kept, is the most important. Documents older than fifty years are passed on to the Public Records Departments. The provincial authorities and about sixty municipalities have their own archives. Important private archives include the Archives of the Royal House in The Hague and the archives that are housed at the International Institute of Social History in Amsterdam, the International Information Centre for the Women's Movement in Amsterdam and the Dutch Institute for Architecture and Town Planning in Rotterdam.
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