{"id":155455,"date":"2023-06-01T14:43:58","date_gmt":"2023-06-01T12:43:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=155455"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:48","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:48","slug":"advisory-committee-add-context-to-painting-of-leiden-cigar-smokers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2023\/06\/01\/advisory-committee-add-context-to-painting-of-leiden-cigar-smokers\/","title":{"rendered":"Advisory committee: Add context to painting of Leiden cigar smokers"},"content":{"rendered":"

A committee is planning to advise that the controversial painting depicting white, cigar-smoking men can continue to hang on a wall at Leiden University, as long as information providing context is displayed alongside it.<\/p>\n

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Cigar-smoking university administrators, painting by Rein Dool.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRein Dool<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The head of the committee, Professor Emeritus of Contemporary Art History Kitty Zijlmans, wants the painting to have a prominent place in the Academy Building, although only when \u2018accompanied by relevant information\u2019. This appeared in a report<\/a> published by news platform Mare last Friday about a symposium on art at the university. The committee also plans to advise that a diverse art committee should from now on monitor such issues and discuss them with students and staff. The advice has yet to be officially released.<\/p>\n

Furore<\/h2>

The artwork, made by Rein Dool in the 1970s, portrays<\/a> the Leiden University Executive Board of the time. A PhD student criticised the painting and turned to Twitter<\/a> to see what others thought. Leiden Law School removed the work following the furore<\/a> that erupted, only to put it back on the wall<\/a> once the commotion had died down.<\/p>\n

In response to parliamentary questions from the VVD, Education Minister Robbert Dijkgraaf said<\/a> that he saw few problems in the discussion around the artwork. In his opinion, art can help drive the debate on the representativeness of board members of educational institutions.<\/p>\n

That prompted accusations that he was yielding to the activists too easily. However, Dijkgraaf brushed these criticisms aside: the ministry aims to combat discrimination and racism and encourage diversity.<\/p>\n\n\t

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