The highly acclaimed exhibition “Susanna, from the Middle Ages to MeToo,” which ran from October 2024 to March 2025 at Museum Gouda, has been nominated for the 2025 Exhibition Award. Only ten museums are eligible for this prestigious national award from Museumtijdschrift. The city museum is immensely proud and is calling on all residents of Gouda to cast their votes.
“Fantastic! With this nomination, we’re really putting Gouda in the spotlight as a city of culture,” says museum director Femke Haijtema. “And it’s wonderful that ‘Susanna’ has made an impression. Both the relevant subject matter and the beautiful works of art deserve it.” Susanna is an age-old story about a young woman who is harassed by two powerful men. Known from the Old Testament and One Thousand and One Nights, Susanna only truly became famous thanks to art. She was painted time and again, often as a beautiful naked woman bathing in a fountain. In the exhibition, the museum explored why artists captured this #MeToo scene time and again.
's SistersSusanna inspired artists ranging from Rembrandt van Rijn to Artemisia Gentileschi, as well as contemporary artists. As a symbol of piety and marital fidelity, or conversely as an object of desire. As a victim of assault, or conversely as a powerful survivor. Through dozens of paintings, drawings, and objects from the Netherlands and abroad, Susanna took center stage in Gouda. The museum also opted for a surprising collaboration with the Sekszusjes, known for their educational YouTube series. “The exhibition elicited a wide range of reactions,” Haijtema notes. “And that’s precisely what makes it interesting! Many people found Susanna very beautiful or impressive and were moved, but there were also visitors who didn’t care for it at all.” Special programs on consent and inappropriate behavior reached approximately 1,000 young people.
Overwhelmed
Museum staff and volunteers remember above all the success and the huge influx of visitors. “During those final weeks, we hardly knew what was happening to us. To be honest, we were also a bit relieved when the exhibition ended,” admits visitor services staff member Lonneke van der Kraan. A whopping 41,291 people visited Susanna, a record for the museum. Visitors who traveled to Gouda from all over the country specifically for the exhibition generated a local economic boost of at least €1.5 million.
Every vote counts
The next two weeks will be all about campaigning for the Gouda museum. The competition with larger museums calls for creativity and 100% commitment. Mayor Pieter Verhoeve kicks off the campaign with his vote. “It’s fantastic that Museum Gouda is among the best museums in the Netherlands. Let’s make sure our city wins this award, so vote, everyone!” Plus, everyone who votes has a chance to win a VIP weekend for two, including dinner and an overnight stay. Cast your vote.
NomineesOther museums in the running for the award include Bonnefanten (Maastricht), H’ART Museum (Amsterdam), Museum de Fundatie (Zwolle), Keramiekmuseum Princessehof (Leeuwarden), Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (Leiden), Museum Arnhem and Museum Belvédère (Heerenveen), Rijksmuseum Twente (Enschede), Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam and Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam), and Centraal Museum (Utrecht). The voting period runs from August 28 through September 14, 2025. After that, Museum Gouda and the other nominees will have to wait and see. The award ceremony will take place on Wednesday, October 15, at the Kunsthal in Rotterdam.
The exhibition “Susanna” was made possible in part by the Mondriaan Fund, the Cultuurfonds, Fonds 21, and the City of Gouda.
