In Memoriam Jacques Reiners

22 June 1952 - 14 April 2022

Jacques Reiners worked at Maastricht University from 1978 to 2018. He served as head of Studium Generale (SG) from 1980. He worked with heart and soul for SG, which he built up and expanded with the conviction that science and culture are valuable and should be shared. And that is what he did, with enthusiasm and a good sense of humour, with engagement and perseverance.

There is an anecdote from his early years that has stuck in my mind. It is about a dada evening he organised in which one of the performances ended with the emptying of a bag of pig's blood. It all happened inside the chapel of the Tongersestraat monastery. The upshot was that Jacques, who had also been surprised by this ending, was ordered to report to the then rector, Rob van den Biggelaar, who gave him a serious reprimand. However, as he left the rector’s office, he was told to keep on doing ‘special’ things. Keep on following his heart, in other words. And that he did.

Together with his team, Jacques went on to create many beautiful programmes, from little gems in modest venues to big festivals attracting large crowds. Much of these sprung from his creative mind.

This resulted in special encounters with a wide range of guests including Belgian actress and director Dora van der Groen, Hungarian dissident and writer György Konrád, German transgender Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, Dutch theatre maker Loes Luca, Holocaust survivor Jules Schelvis, psychiatrist Dirk De Wachter, professor of business spirituality Paul de Blot and many others.

Jacques took a strong interest in things that are different and he simply loved the unusual. This made him a colourful person, of whom universities can never have enough.

This was particularly evident during the memorable ‘Evenings of the Word’ in the Theater aan het Vrijthof and the Global Culture Nights with its beautiful world music. And much of this comes together in the PAS Festival, organised annually at the beginning of the academic year since 2014. He was involved in this festival until a week before his death. PAS stands for Pleasure Arts and Science and opens the doors of the university to share knowledge and enjoyment of exceptional music and theatre. Interesting, beautiful, moving and fun, with a cocky edge. In the true spirit of Jacques.

One of the highlights that many will remember remains the jubilee festival organised in 2001 to celebrate the university’s 25th anniversary. For a full week, there were circus tents and stages in the gardens of the former monastery on Tongersestraat, buzzing with life, and Vrijthof Square was packed to the rafters for the final act: a Rowen Hèze concert. This was a gift from the university to the city. If you look closely on the festival poster, you can see Jacques (representing the university) dancing with the city - symbolic of his role as inspirer and connector. It is no coincidence that he was appointed Knight of the Order of Oranje-Nassau in 2009 and was awarded the Maastricht University Medallion of Honour upon his retirement in 2018.

Our thoughts are with Marieke, her family and loved ones.

Rob van Duijn, head of UM Studium Generale