On Monday, December 7, 2015, His Majesty King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands visited the Stichting Duits-Nederlandse Windtunnels (DNW) and the Nederlands Lucht- en Ruimtevaartcentrum (NLR) wind tunnel in  Marknesse.   DNW is Europe’s most advanced and specialized organizations for wind tunnel testing. DNW’s eleven wind tunnels include subsonic, transonic and supersonic facilities, and provide experimental aerodynamic simulation capabilities to the user community at large.

During today’s visit His Majesty was given a tour of the wind tunnel facility and met with engineers as well as representatives from NLR and DMW.  Thereafter, His Majesty participated in a roundtable discussion with “…representatives from the Dutch Ministry of Economy, the trade association of the aerospace sector NAG, Fokker, engineering and ADSE KVE Composites Group…” according to RVD.

Click here to view photos from today’s visit. 

Photo courtesy of RVD/HKH

On Friday, December 4, 2015, Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands hosted a luncheon at Paleis Noordeinde in Den Haag.

This afternoon’s gathering was held for 26 outstanding Dutch individuals who recently:

“…received a prize or other award for their achievements in areas of art, culture, media and journalism, science and business. [Their Majesties] wanted to offer a luncheon to express their appreciation for the people who have made such an extraordinary achievement.” 

Photo courtesy of RVD/HKH

On Wednesday, December 2, 2015, Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands accompanied by Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, Their Royal Highnesses Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands, and Her Royal Highness Princess Mabel of Ornaje-Nassau attended the 2015 Prins Claus Prijs held at the Koninklijk Paleis in Amsterdam.

The prize, worth €100,000, are presented each year to outstanding individuals and organizations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean for their outstanding achievements in the field of culture and development and the positive effect of their work on their direct environment and the wider cultural or social field.

Prince Constantijn, who is Honorary Chairman of the Prins Claus Prijs, presented the principal award to Iranian artist, documentary filmmaker, and photojournalist, Ms. Newsha Tavakolian.  In a statement issued on her personal Facebook page Ms. Tavakolian announced that a portion of her winnings will go to helping refugees:

“Dear all,
I am extremely humbled and overwhelmed to have been chosen as the winner of the 2015 principal Prince Claus award. I will never forget this day in my life.  Unfortunately it is hard for me to enjoy this prize as much as I would like to, seeing the region where I work and live in flames and tens of thousands seeking refuge in faraway lands.

I had already decided to donate 13.000 euro’s to the Sheed award, a fully independent photography prize in Iran. They will use it for an annual grant for two young photographers, as well as for a 5 year long educational project for young Iranian documentary photographers.

The Mahak charity helps children with cancer. They treated my cousin Ali Reza who suffered from leukemia. Despite the fantastic and free care he did not make it and died age 10. I had long ago decided to support them, the Prince Claus award helps me to donate 10.000 euro’s for their charity.

Animals are the love of my life and there are several good organizations in Iran supporting animals in my country. I salute the often young volunteers who work day in day out in shelters. I will divide 7000 euro’s over some of these organizations.

Today I have also decided to donate another 15.000 euro’s to an organization supporting Syrian and Iraqi refugees. I have worked in both their countries and want to give back to all the kindness Iraqi’s and Syrians always welcomed me with, despite the dire circumstances they live in.

Please help me find an organization that helps people in a good and transparent way. All suggestions are welcome. I will report on my Facebook when I made the donations.

I want to dedicate this Award to all colleagues who risk their lives telling stories of others that no one listens too.

Finally, my congratulations to the other winners and deepest gratitude to the Prince Claus Fund and the jury.”

If you are interested in learning more about Ms. Tavakolian’s amazing work please visit her official website here. 

To view photos please click here and here. 

Photo courtesy of RVD/HKH

On Tuesday, December 1, 2015, Her Majesty Queen Maxima of the Netherlands arrived at the United States Department of Treasury in Washington, D.C. to participate in the Financial Inclusion Forum panel discussion.

The Department of the Treasury and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) held today’s forum to discuss ways to foster greater access to safe and affordable financial services for everyone.

Click here to view photos. 

Photo courtesy of Zimbio

On Monday, November 30, 2015, Her Majesty Queen Maxima of the Netherlands arrived at the Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ in Amsterdam to attend the 2015 Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds Prijs.

The winner of the prize went to Dutch architect and creative director of Mecanoo, Ms. Francine Houben.

Click here to watch a video. 

Click here to view photos. 

Photo courtesy of Zimbio

On the evening of November 28, 2015, Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands officially opened the 4th Edition of the Amsterdam Light Festival in Amsterdam.

Held under the theme, Friendship, the 55-day festival transforms Amsterdam:

“…every year into a true city of lights with the help of contemporary (inter)national light artists. During the annual festival for young and old, both the residents of Amsterdam and the city’s many visitors are treated to a spectacle of light. At the same time, the festival offers talented (young) light artists a platform to present their latest work.”

If you are interested in learning more about the Amsterdam Light Festival please click here.  

Click here to view photos.

 Photo courtesy of RVD/HKH

On Friday, November 27, 2015, Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands opened the exhibition, Spaanse Meesters uit de Hermitage: De Wereld van  El Greco, Ribera, Zurbarán, Velázquez, Murillo & Goya (Spanish Masters from the Hermitage: The World of El Greco, Ribera, Zurbarán, Velázquez, Murillo & Goya), at the Hermitage Amsterdam in Amsterdam.

The exhibition displays over sixty paintings including The Apostles Peter and Paul by El Greco, Velázquez’s Portrait of the Count Duke of Olivares, Murillo’s Immaculate Conception, and Goya’s Portrait of the Actress Antonia Zárate.

According to a press release the exhibition tells the story of the rise and glory of Spanish art in the Golden Age which began in the late sixteenth century:

“…and flourished throughout the seventeenth century, coinciding with the Dutch Golden Age. While the Netherlands was revolting against Spanish rule, Spain was developing its own artistic signature. Philip II, an absolute monarch in a society dominated by the Catholic Church, commissioned the construction of El Escorial in 1563. The enormous palace and monastery complex near Madrid was decorated by great Spanish and Italian masters. Spain’s unimaginable wealth, amassed largely during the country’s period of colonial gold fever – Spain called itself ‘the Empire on which the sun never sets’ – brought painters abundant commissions for the king, churches and private collectors. Spanish art flourished.

The works of the great Spanish painters are exceptional for their exquisite convergence of the spiritual and the theatrical. Influenced by the Italians, painters like El Greco, Ribera and Zurbarán developed a singular Spanish style marked by strong contrasts of light and dark. Their works exude the temperament and pride of the Iberian Peninsula. Murillo and in particular Velázquez, a trendsetter, added their own signature to that style and reached new heights. Goya, an equally awe-inspiring talent, followed in their footsteps with his confrontational realism. Goya is also famous for his penetrating graphic cycles and a number of his dramatic etchings are featured in the exhibition, including pieces from Los Desastres de la Guerra, depicting the horrors of the Napoleonic occupation of Spain. The artists of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries continued the tradition, rendering the strong contrasts in society in works that reflect both the sun-drenched Spanish culture and the dark sides of history…” 

Spaanse Meesters uit de Hermitage: De Wereld van El Greco, Ribera, Zurbarán, Velázquez, Murillo & Goya will be open to the public beginning on November 28, 2015 – May 29, 2016 at the Hermitage Amsterdam.

Click here to view photos. 

Photo courtesy of RVD/HKH