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MACCH Commissioned Research

Consultancy, contract research and other service activities directed towards the larger society and in collaboration with private and public partners make up the third pillar of MACCH. With its interdisciplinary approach and by bringing together researchers from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Law, the School of Business and Economics, the Faculty of Science and Engineering, the Sociaal Historisch Centrum voor Limburg and the Stichting Restauratie Atelier Limburg, MACCH responds to the demands of the increasingly multi-layered and complex challenges facing the fields of arts and heritage today. Its combination of legal, (art) historical, philosophical, sociological, economic and practical expertise is unique in Europe. Firmly embedded in the region and operating on an international level, the Centre aims to function as a flywheel in the cooperation between arts and heritage organisations, creative industries, business, and societal partners. MACCH operates practice-oriented and demand-driven, combining academic rigor and creativity.

Research areas include: cultural policy evaluation; project monitoring; property law and intellectual law; art market research; re-use of industrial heritage; public participation; conservation and documentation of art.

Examples of contract research and consultancy work are:

  • In 2022 and 2023 Claartje Rasterhoff was commissioned to conduct research for the Boekman Foundation - Institute for arts, culture and related policy (the Netherlands) with the aim to develop a Kennisagenda for the Dutch cultural and creative sectors. The report can be found here: https://www.boekman.nl/thema/kennisagenda-cultuurbeleid/ 
     
  • In 2023 and 2024 Lars van Vliet wrote a country report about the functioning of the Dutch Restitutions Committee on behalf of the German government. The German government commissioned a large report from Prof. Weller in Bonn, which had to be based on country reports of all countries that currently have a Restitutions Committee. The country reports and the general report based on these reports have now been published by the German government. 
     
  • Analysis of Cultural Education in Limburg. Cultural education is part of the curriculum of primary schools in the Netherlands. These cultural education programmes receive funding from various governments and the Cultural Participation Fund (Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie). Cultural Education with Quality (Cultuureducatie met kwaliteit) is the most commonly used programme in the Netherlands. Primary schools offering cultural education are organized in regional associations with a so-called Penvoerder (official representative and coordinator). Periodic evaluation is one of the conditions for receiving public funding. For this purpose LKCA (Landelijk Kennisinstituut Cultuureducatie en Amateurkunst) has developed a digital evaluation tool called Evi2.0. Researchers from various universities in the Netherlands have been asked to analyse the results of the periodic evaluations. Penvoerders in the Province of Limburg have asked Joop de Jong and his research team for the periodic analysis (2022 and 2024) of the Evi2.0 results.
     
  • Advise, inventory and deaccessioning of a municipal art collection (2023 – 2025) containing about 1200 works of art, commissioned by a municipality in Limburg.
     
  • Informal cultural participation in Limburg (not individual and not participating in a formal group or organisation), commissioned by Huis voor de Kunsten Limburg (the Limburg institute for amateur and professional arts and cultural heritage), with financial support from the Cultural Participation Fund (2024).
     

  • 'Verkenning van de toestand van de industriële Rijksmonumenten in Limburg in 2014-2015’. Researchers: Prof. dr. Ernst Homburg et al., Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Maastricht University. Commissioned by: Province of Limburg.


     

  • On the invitation of the Province of Limburg, the vision document ‘Sjiek is miech dat!’ Visie op taal als erfgoed (‘Language as Heritage’) was written to provide input for the upcoming Provincial Heritage Policy Document. The vision document is written by prof. L. Cornips (Leerstoel Taalcultuur in Limburg) and dr. V. van Saaze (MACCH), drs. M. Frencken, E. van Nieuwenhoven, drs. T. van de Wijngaard (Huis voor de Kunsten Limburg), and prof. R. van Hout (Raod veur ’t Limburgs) in close cooperation with several local language organisations.