The Society of Arts is a society of more than eighty artists working across all disciplines, from literature and the visual arts to design, architecture, film, music and the performing arts. The Society of Arts consolidates and champions the position of art in our society.
Go directly to: navigation
Go directly to: content
Mission and objectives
Mission
The Society of Arts consolidates and champions the position of art in our society. It does so because art is indispensable for the welfare of society and offers valuable ways to better understand and examine the world. Its approach is twofold: it represents the interests of the art world and it addresses the major challenges of our time.
In that approach, the Society consistently emphasises the relationship between the various artistic disciplines, between the arts and society, and between the arts and the sciences.
Former chairmen Anne Vegter and Barbara Visser with chair Liesbeth Bik in 2024. Image by Maarten Nauw.
General objective
Art is indispensable
The Society of Arts is a society of more than eighty artists working across all disciplines, from literature and the visual arts to design, architecture, film, music and the performing arts.
Its most important task is to consolidate and champion the position of the arts in our society. Art is indispensable for the welfare of society and offers valuable ways to better understand and examine the world.
Members as catalysts
The Society of Arts is nothing without its members. It is able to contribute to the public debate only thanks to their expertise and the power of art to expand and reframe our view and to imagine alternatives.
As observer, inspiration and catalyst, the Society identifies current issues, addresses what needs to be challenged, advises on what has to change and explores possible ways of doing so.
In that approach, the Society consistently emphasises the relationship between the various artistic disciplines, between the arts and society, and between the arts and the sciences.
Inspire and spur action
The Society of Arts intends for its activities to inspire artists, policymakers and the rest of the Netherlands and spur them to take action. Its approach is twofold: it represents the interests of the art world and it addresses the major challenges of our time.
In this way, it creates space for new insights and ideas about climate change, social inequity and societal transitions. The Society of Arts also offers solicited and unsolicited advice to politicians and policymakers and serves as a liaison for the media, civil society organisations and partners in the arts and culture.
Royal Academy: Arts and Sciences
The Society of Arts was founded in 2014 as part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. The work of scientists and scholars and the work of artists have much in common. In both, passion and a sense of wonder are critical and creativity and persistence are essential. The relationship between the arts and the sciences is therefore accorded a special place in the Society’s activities.
Micha Hamel during a performance at the Society of Arts Festival, 2024. Image by Maarten Nauw.