معرفی
Kees Ribbens is a senior researcher at the NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies and an endowed professor of Popular Historical Culture of Global Conflicts and Mass Violence at Erasmus University Rotterdam, affiliated with the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication and the Department of History. He holds a PhD from Utrecht University and has held academic positions at Utrecht University, Radboud University Nijmegen, and Erasmus University Rotterdam.
- PhD in Modern History, Utrecht University (2001)
- MA in Modern History, Radboud University Nijmegen
Ribbens' research centers on how memories of war, genocide, and mass violence—especially World War II and the Holocaust—are expressed in words and images. He explores public history through commemorations, museums, education, and particularly popular culture such as comics, graphic novels, tourism, and digital media. His work reveals how historical experiences are reinterpreted across national and transnational contexts for evolving audiences.
His recent publications and projects, such as Survivor-Centered Visual Narratives and History’s Darkroom, emphasize visual culture and digital memory, analyzing how trauma is represented and remembered. Themes across his work include the Anne Frank legacy, visual propaganda, post-war memory in Dutch cities like Zwolle, and the ethical dimensions of memory commodification. His interdisciplinary approach combines history, media studies, and cultural analysis.
Ribbens has received two notable awards for his contributions to public history and memory studies. He is an active public intellectual, frequently contributing to media and expert discussions on contemporary conflicts and historical memory.
He supervises PhD candidates and leads major research initiatives, including editorial roles and project leadership. His grants and collaborations reflect sustained funding and institutional support. He has served as managing editor of the Tijdschrift voor Geschiedenis and contributes to digital platforms and public-facing scholarship.
Ribbens leads and participates in key research teams such as the Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives project and History’s Darkroom, which investigate visual and digital representations of war and genocide. These teams include international scholars and focus on ethical, interdisciplinary approaches to memory and testimony.
