Exhibition “Allersmaborg: A Retreat Throughout Seven Centuries”

For our course ‘Atelier Living Heritage’, we have been given the exciting opportunity to organise an exhibition in the Wierdenland museum in Ezinge from scratch. Together with art collectors, scholars and other parties involved in the (cultural) history of the region, we get to set up an exhibition about the Allersmaborg. It is special and exciting to have been given the freedom to tell the story of the borg in our own way and through the medium of an exhibition. Our aim is to showcase the richness of the oldest cultural landscape in the Netherlands.

The Allersmaborg is a vital, indispensable part of this landscape in cultural, as well as historic terms. The exhibition describes how the Allersmaborg has had different functions for different owners, throughout nine centuries. But, even though the borg has known many different functions, it has consistently been a retreat for each owner throughout the centuries. In 2019, Annette van der Post and prof. dr. Henk Th. van Veen have published the book ‘Zeven Eeuwen Allersmaborg’ (‘Seven Centuries Allersmaborg’) about the history of the Allersmaborg. In nine chapters they describe the history of the borg and our exhibition follows these nine chapters. They will be showcased over nine different displays available in our exhibition space. These chapters are brought together through the overarching theme: ‘retreat’ (or ‘toevluchtsoord’). When reading the book it became clear that despite the different functions (e.g., castle, tenant house, gallery) throughout the many centuries of existence, the borg has continuously been a safe haven for its owners. This exhibition addresses the historical as well as cultural relevance the borg has had in the region. This means that this exhibition is particularly interesting for those who are interested in histories of ‘borgen’ and art in the province of Groningen. We are very excited to bring its intriguing, rich and diverse history to the public!