What role do culture, books, or heritage play in your personal or professional life? 

As a professor of Latin language and literature at Ghent University, it is clear that my interest is entirely devoted to the cultural and historical heritage of Europe. I am fortunate to be among those whose personal passions are also reflected in their professional work. 
Since my professional focus lies on Latin literature and culture in post-Antique Europe, I feel deeply connected to the entirety of Europe’s cultural history and see it as my calling to bring to life the vast spectrum shaped by Latin as Europe’s cosmopolitan language up to the eighteenth century (and beyond). Naturally, manuscript and book culture are central to this. I frequently and gladly incorporate Ghent University’s rich collection into my teaching and research, a collection which, after that of KBR, is the oldest in Belgium. 

What does the KBR museum mean to you? Why did you choose to join this particular circle of friends? 

Given my involvement with my university’s collection, I can only welcome the KBR museum’s initiative. KBR ranks among Europe’s most important library institutions. Its collections include world-famous works that are true masterpieces of European heritage. I consider KBR’s decision to make these treasures more widely accessible to the public an excellent one. 
Major libraries often remain too closed off, preventing the cultural and social importance of their holdings from reaching the wider public. This poses concrete and real risks to their continued existence and functioning in a world where the cultural and heritage sectors are under increasing pressure.
In doing so, KBR joins institutions such as the Bibliothèque Nationale de France in Paris and the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin. 
In addition, there is the typically Belgian situation whereby the KBR museum, as a federal institution, is often at a disadvantage when it comes to state funding and support. For that reason, I see it as my duty, both as a professional in this field and as a Belgian citizen, to support the KBR museum. 

Do you have a favourite artwork, object, or manuscript in the museum? Why does it speak to you? Is there a space or aspect of KBR that particularly fascinates you? 

Because of my professional activities, I am interested in the entire culture and history of the book in Europe (and beyond). It is therefore not easy to choose, but the Library of the Dukes of Burgundy continues to hold my special attention. It may be regarded as one of the most important expressions of the Northern Renaissance, too often overshadowed by its Italian counterpart. The damage inflicted on this heritage during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries has sadly deprived us of much of the splendour of that era. The Library gives us a glimpse of it, but it has by no means revealed all its secrets yet. 

Would you like to share your story and tell us about your connection to the KBR museum?

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