At the graduation ceremony last Friday, master student Maria Beaumaster was awarded the Peter van Mensch prize for her research on storytelling at Mezrab - The House of Stories. The Peter van Mensch is awarded for innovative and critical reflections in museology and heritage theory. The jury was composed of AHK professors Hester Dibbits and Melissa Bremmer.

Maria posed the question “How can Mezrab use participative storytelling methods to facilitate audience stewardship of personal narratives?”. The jury reported: "Maria demonstrates excellent skills in meta-reflection. Confronting the data with the theoretical framework and relevant concepts, the research report offers much more than only a reflection on current storytelling practices of Mezrab." It is the hope that the prize is a promising start of a fruitful career in the heritage field.

Maria Beaumaster comes from Canada and had completed a bachelor's in design at the Royal Academy of the Arts, The Hague, prior to joining the master Applied Museum and Heritage Studies. She received the award in the presence of her family who had especially come over for the graduation ceremony.