Out and About: August 2023
TEXT: DANA MARIN
Schueberfouer. Photo: Sabino Parente
August is known as the month of abundance, and that holds true for the events calendar in Benelux as well. As temperatures soar, we’re enticed to spend more time outdoors, enjoying each other’s company and savouring the fragrant summer nights. Embrace this delightful season as opportunities for shared experiences and memorable moments abound.
Schueberfouer
23 August – 11 September, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg One of the biggest funfairs in Europe, the Schueberfouer, is coming to Luxembourg at the end of August. The origins of this fair go all the way to 1340 when John the Blind, Count of Luxembourg, organised an eight-day mar- ket in celebration of Saint Bartholomew’s Day. Today, the fair hosts 200 stalls and expects to welcome two million visitors. Themed days, such as Family Day or Day of the Queens, will add to the excitement, ensuring there’s some- thing enjoyable for everyone.
Steampunk Convention
5-6 August, Echternach, Luxembourg For two days in August, the oldest city of Lux- embourg will play host to the sixth edition of the Steampunk Convention. The theme for this year is ‘The Transformation of the Little Marquise’. Expect many creative costumes, intricate ma-chinery and gears, a market, music and photo shoots. The convention will end with a glorious costume competition.
Steampunk Echternach.Photo: Uli Fielitz
Amersfoort World Jazz Festival
15-20 August, Amersfoort, the Netherlands Jazz lovers in the Netherlands are in for a treat this summer, with the 44th edition of the Amersfoort World Jazz Festival! Visitors can choose from more than 80 concerts at indoor and outdoor locations. At the Lieve Vrouwek- erkhof, you can listen to sounds from the Latin America and Caribbean Islands, fado and gyp- sy jazz, and more. Dutch jazz talents will pres- ent their latest music at various locations, and you can attend intimate acoustic concerts in the Sint Aegtenkapel.
Amersfoort World Jazz Festival. Photo: De Nozem Fotografie
Pride Amsterdam
1-6 August, Amsterdam, the Netherlands Pride Amsterdam brings a week of celebra- tion to a city known for its important role in the queer community. Throughout the week, parties, concerts and other events will take place across the Dutch capital, culminating in the spectacular boat parade on the canals on Saturday, 5 August. This year’s theme is #YouAreIncluded, and it’s about diversity with- in the LGBTI community.
Pride Amsterdam. Photo: Jeroen Ploeger
Richard Long in the Rijksmuseum Gardens
Until 29 October, Amsterdam, the Netherlands For the past ten years, the Rijksmuseum has organised yearly sculpture exhibitions in its gar- den. Open to everyone, the museum’s garden is a green spot in the city centre where you can stop for a relaxing break, read a book and ap- preciate the beauty of flowers and sculptures. The 10th edition of the annual sculpture exhibi- tion in the Rijksmuseum Gardens will celebrate the work of Richard Long, a British artist who is known for his subtle intervention in landscape, which can be explored by walking.
Richard Long, Time after Time, 2023. Photo: Rijksmuseum, Jannes Linders
Grachtenfestival
11-20 August, Amsterdam, the Netherlands Having the beautiful canals of Amsterdam as a backdrop, the Grachtenfestival is an annual celebration of classical music, jazz and music from various cultures. Young musicians from all over the world will captivate the audience over ten days, and, as night falls, the streets of the city centre will come alive with the resounding melo- dies of this vibrant festival.
Grachtenfestival. Photo: Melle Meivogel
European Para Championships
8-20 August, Rotterdam, the Netherlands This multi-sport event, hosted every four years, is coming to Rotterdam in 2023. It will mark the first edition where the European Para Championships of ten different parasports will be organised simultaneously. There are 1,500 Paralympic athletes from 45 different Euro- pean countries enrolled for the competitions, promising a captivating event.
www.europeanparachampionships.com
European Para Championship. Photo: EPC
Utrecht Early Music Festival
25 August-3 September, Utrecht, the Netherlands Celebrate the early European art and music at the Utrecht annual Early Music Festival. This year, the festival embraces the theme of ‘Reviv- al’ and will feature music from the Renaissance. The festival challenges musicians to create new ways of exploring musical heritage.
Utrecht Early Music Festival. Photo: Marieke Wijntjes
Four Sisters
Until 27 August, Brussels, Belgium Four Sisters is a must-see moving exhibition at the Jewish Museum in Brussels, showcasing the work of four Jewish artists: Chantal Aker- man, Marianne Berenhaut, Sarah Kaliski and Julia Pirotte. They are sisters from different parents and different generations, but they all lived in Brussels and have in common that they lived through disaster and created work that expresses their lives.
www.mjb-jmb.org/en/four-sisters
Four Sisters. Photo: Hugard & Vanoverschelde
Quintanilha: Visual Chronicles of Brazil
Until 27 August, Brussels, Belgium The Comics Art Museum in Brussels hosts an exhibition b the Brazilian artist Marcello Quintanilha. Drawing inspiration from every- day life in Brazil, his captivating stories are imbued with tension and feature striking characters. Quintanilha aims to expose the country’s social inequalities and inequities through storytelling.
Quintanilha. Photo: Daniel Fouss, Comics Art Museum
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Receive our monthly newsletter by email
