Exhibition ‘Colourful Cultural Heritage. On the Splendour of Flags and Banners from Limburg’

From 28 October 2021 to late March 2022, the exhibition ‘Colourful cultural heritage. On the splendour of flags and banners from Limburg’ will be on view in the exhibition space of the main administrative building of Maastricht University at Minderbroedersberg 4.

The exhibition shows the bright splendour of flags and banners. Throughout the twentieth century, flags and banners were perhaps nowhere as popular within the Netherlands as in the Province of Limburg. Every self-respecting club or organization – from local brass bands to all sorts of sports clubs – had its own flag or banner, used as a proud sign for presenting itself to the outside world. A flag is a powerful symbol and represents continuity across the generations. The colourful cultural heritage of flags and banners from Limburg tells us a lot about the high degree of sociability in this traditionally Catholic province. Flags and banners also feature as major expressions of identity and as such they may also trigger strong emotions.

The flags and banners on display, many of which reveal genuine craftmanship, also provide a nice historical look at the large diversity of cultural life in Limburg. The exhibition highlights the divergent designs of flags and banners, which over the course of the twentieth century were often produced in special embroidery studios. The collection contains several masterpieces.

This exhibition is organized by the Art and Heritage Commission in cooperation with the Centre for Social History of Limburg. It is part of the DRAPO project, which aims to display as many as possible banners and flags from Limburg in a digital public gallery. For more information, please visit http://limburgsevaandels.nl/galerij

Contact person > Annemieke Klijn, curator Art and Heritage Commission / https://www.kec-um.nl/