City and university sign declaration of intent on E. du Perron Award
On February 15, mayor Theo Weterings and Vice-President of the Tilburg University Executive Board Paulina Snijders will sign a declaration of intent on collaboration with respect to the E. du Perron Award. The City and the university will work together on changing the format of the presentation of this literary prize. More prize money will be made available and young people will be an important target group as regards both the events program and the presentation. This new ambition involving the E. du Perron Award is part of broader collaboration between Tilburg University and the City in the field of culture.
New format of the E. du Perron Award
The first presentation of the E. du Perron Award in its new format will take place later this year. Since 1986, the City of Tilburg and Tilburg University have presented the E. du Perron Award (in Dutch) to writers who are committed to promoting mutual understanding and good relations among population groups residing in the Netherlands. Laureates include Ellen Deckwitz, Jan Leyers, Ramsey Nasr, Marion Bloem, and Abdelkader Benali. Starting this year, the prize money will be increased from € 2,500 to € 10,000 and the award will be presented every two years rather than annually. In addition, young people will be actively involved in the events program.
This year, Tilburg University will connect the presentation of the Award to Night University. Studium Generale organizes this annual science festival on campus. The program includes lectures, workshops, and cultural performances. In the events program is oriented towards the theme of inclusion and boundaries, with participation by young people and young writers from Tilburg. Vice-President of the Executive Board Paulina Snijders: “With the Du Perron Award in its new format, we want to show that critical thinking requires dialogue and a balancing of arguments. This is all the more important at a time in which people increasingly live in bubbles and echo chambers and are quick to form their opinion.”
City’s ambitions
The presentation of the E. du Perron Award will take place on May 19, 2022. Paul Scheffer, publicist and Emeritus Professor of European Studies at Tilburg University, will hold the E. du Perron Lecture on that occasion. Alderman Marcelle Hendrickx is a jury member. “The great appreciation and the new organization around the Award, in which young people are explicitly involved, fits the ambitions of our city. It is our way of underlining the importance of culture and it shows our appreciation of how artists contribute to the social debate."
Broader cultural collaboration
The restyled E. du Perron Award and the signing of the declaration of intent are part of broader collaboration which the two parties engage in in the field of cultural events programming. The City is exploring the possibility of offering Tilburg University students and staff a cultural pass with which they can participate in cultural events in the city at a reduced rate. In addition, the City supports the university and Studium Generale in communicating on cultural events they organize that might be interesting for people living in Tilburg.
E. du Perron
E. du Perron (1899-1940) was a Dutch critic, poet, and author born in the Dutch East Indies, best known for his novel Het land van herkomst ([Land of Origin], 1935). His work reflects his great commitment to the issues of his time and his critical attitude towards the Dutch government’s policy on the Dutch East Indies. This was also an important consideration in naming this literature award after him.
Contact
Odile Heynders, TSHD, O.M.Heynders@tilburguniversity.edu