New online exhibition: Dutch Landscape Designed, 1946 -1954

Designing the Dutch landscape

You come across trees and shrubs everywhere you go in the Netherlands, but few people realise that all this greenery forms part of a grand plan. From 1946 to 1976, a small group of landscape designers created more than 450 landscape plans for the Netherlands. Together, these plans cover almost 70% of the Netherlands.

Now that the world is focused on nitrogen reduction, climate change and the transition of rural areas, the discussion on a new landscape design for the Netherlands is highly topical.

Online exhibition Dutch Landscape Designed

The online exhibition focusses on the early years of the land consolidation, from 1946 until 1954. It reveals how the disciplines of the then Agricultural College (Landbouwhogeschool), such as soil science, geology, geography, forestry, land and water management, landscape gardening and botany, joined forces to create the idea of a ‘Dutch Landscape Plan’.

Seventy years later, these landscape types are still recognisable in our landscape. A good example is the Binnenveld nature area close to Wageningen campus.

The online exhibition shows landscape plans and photos that were on display in the exhibition at the Forum Library, but new photos have also been added to the online exhibition.

Dutch Landscape Plan

The exhibition both on site and online were developed together with guest curator Henk van Blerck. Henk van Blerck recently completed his PhD with the thesis ‘Landschapsplan Nederland’. A printed version of the thesis is available in Dutch in the Forum Library. His work is primarily based on the Staatsbosbeheer collection. The plans in this collection cover almost 70% of the Netherlands and can be considered as one 'Landscape plan for the Netherlands'.

Special Collections Opening Hours

The exhibition at the Library's Special Collections runs through the beginning of April 2023.

Do you want to visit the exhibition on campus? Special Collections is open Monday to Friday from 9 am to 1 pm. If you would like to visit the collection in the afternoon or with a group, please send an e-mail to speccoll.library@wur.nl.

Address: Special Collections Reading Room, WUR Library, Wageningen University & Research Forum, Building 102, Droevendaalsesteeg 2, 6706 KN Wageningen. Please use the main entrance to the Library on the 2nd floor of the building.