Staging the Nation in an Intermediate Space : Cultural Policy in Luxembourg and the State Museums (1918-1974)

• Autore: Spirinelli Fabio
• Pubblicazione: Basel/Berlin/Boston : , : Walter de Gruyter GmbH, , 2025; ©2025
• Edizione: 1st ed.
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (552 pages)
• Disciplina: 949.35042
• Soggetto topico: HISTORY / Europe / Western; HISTORY / Modern / 20th Century / General; HISTORY / Modern / General
• Nota di contenuto: Intro -- Acknowledgements -- Contents -- Introduction -- A review of cultural policy literature and historiography in Luxembourg -- Presentation of the case study: The Musée National d'Archéologie, d'Histoire et d'ArtPresentation of the case study -- The self-reflecting historian -- Chapter 1 Theory, framework and methodology -- 1.1 Towards a cultural policy history -- 1.2 A framework for a cultural policy history -- 1.3 Luxembourg as a nationalised intermediate space -- 1.4 Sources and source criticism -- Chapter 2 Building the nation: Cultural policy until 1940 -- 2.1 From a liberal era to a national period -- 2.1.1 An anatomy of two concepts: Kulturpolitik and arts et sciences -- 2.1.2 Government spending as a reflection of interwar cultural policy -- 2.2 Cultural policy between nation-building and cultural hybridity -- 2.2.1 The legal framework and the protection of the past -- 2.2.2 Consecrations and celebrations -- The literature prize -- Celebrations and commemorations -- Monumentalising the nation -- 2.2.3 Diplomacy, propaganda and espionage in the Zwischenraum -- 2.3 An aggrandisement of the nation: The Centenary of Independence in 1939 -- 2.3.1 The organisation of a national aggrandisement -- 2.3.2 Multiplying the Centenary: Media, monuments and performances -- The Centenary monument -- Performing the master narrative: The historical procession -- Theatrical performances: D'Hémecht Erzielt -- Capturing the performance: The Centenary film -- 2.3.3 Reception of the Centenary of independence -- 2.4 From private initiatives to the Musée(s) de l'État -- 2.4.1 Travelling collections and unsuitable spaces -- 2.4.2 The imagined museum -- 2.4.3 The construction of the national museum -- 2.5 Preliminary conclusions -- Chapter 3 Neutralising the nation: Luxembourg during Nazi occupation (1940-1944). ; 3.1 From a nationalised intermediate space to a Grenzland of the Third Reich -- 3.1.1 Administration and budget -- 3.1.2 Nazi cultural policy and the dispositif of control -- Ideological foundations -- Reshaping cultural society -- 3.2 Cultural institutions: Instrumentalisation, innovation, expansion -- 3.2.1 Theatre as a tool for cultural propaganda -- 3.2.2 The State Archives and the Archivpflege -- 3.2.3 The Landesbibliothek: "A spiritual fortress in the West of the Reich" -- 3.3 The ambiguous institution: The State Museums during the occupation -- 3.3.1 The administration of the museum and the planned expansion -- 3.3.2 The (ambiguous) activities of the museum -- Acquisitions -- Exhibitions -- 3.3.3 The staff of the Landesmuseum -- The evolution of the staff -- Attitudes and post-war (self-)representation -- 3.4 Preliminary conclusions -- Chapter 4 Rebuilding the nation: Cultural policy in the post-war period -- 4.1 Cultural policy in the aftermath of the war -- 4.1.1 The cultural society between continuities and transformations -- 4.1.2 Cultural policy in times of restitution and reconstruction -- Restitution of books -- Restitution of artworks -- 4.1.3 Ambiguities in the nationalised intermediate space -- Cultural diplomacy -- Cracks in national self-perception -- 4.1.4 A renewed national aggrandisement: Heroes, victims, patriots -- The "return" of John the Blind (1946) -- 4.2 The age of the administrator-state -- 4.2.1 From arts et sciences to affaires culturelles -- 4.2.2 The culture budget: Towards consolidation -- 4.2.3 A conservative cultural policy: High culture, cultural heritage, cultural institutions -- Parliamentary debates -- Legal framework -- 4.2.4 The Millennium Celebration in 1963: Aggrandisement and changes in continuity -- Organisation and coordination -- Projects and programme -- Media and propaganda -- Perceptions and impact. ; 4.2.5 A new cultural diplomacy in a changing context -- Multilateral cultural relations -- Bilateral cultural relations -- International events -- 4.3 Answering the public call: The State Museums after 1945 -- 4.3.1 An institution for the people: Democratisation and education -- 4.3.2 An institution for the nation: The persistence of the national idea -- 4.3.3 Framing the museum: Professionalisation and its limits -- Personnel -- Issues of space and conservation -- Legal framework -- Acquisitions -- Temporary exhibitions -- 4.3.4 Of junk, masterpieces and other things: The value of art and its definition -- Acquisitions -- Temporary exhibitions -- Industrial and popular arts: A special case? -- 4.4 Preliminary conclusions -- Conclusions -- Annex -- Bibliography -- Index of persons.
• Sommario/riassunto: In Luxembourg, the evolution of cultural policy remains underexplored despite its pivotal role in the nation-building process. This book investigates how national cultural policy evolved from the 1920s to the early 1970s, casting Luxembourg as a nationalized intermediate space between French and German influences. Featuring a case study of the history and art section of the State Museums - the precursor to today's Musée national d'archéologie, d'histoire et d'art - the book examines the interplay of structures, actors, and discourses and how a cultural institution was intertwined with cultural policy. The study exposes the tensions between adopting external models, on the one hand, and asserting a distinct national culture amid interventionist policies, on the other hand. By including the occupation period from 1940 to 1944, it illustrates how Nazi policies challenged Luxembourg's nation-building by seeking to integrate it into the Third Reich. Combining theoretical analysis with archival research, this work offers nuanced insights into nation-building processes and is highly relevant for historians, cultural policy scholars, and museum professionals.
• Titolo autorizzato: Staging the Nation in an Intermediate Space
• ISBN: 3-11-220742-4; 3-11-220735-1
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Record Nr.: 996662858403316
• Lo trovi qui: Univ. di Salerno
• Serie: Studien Zur Transnationalen Zeitgeschichte Luxemburgs Series