As part of TU/e’s 70th anniversary, the Art & Heritage Committee (KEC) is creating a platform dedicated to highlights of the university’s social, cultural-historical, and academic heritage. This will result in a longlist that will eventually lead to a TU/e Big Five.

The five selected heritage items will be presented online on October 11, at the start of the university's anniversary week. “This marks a new beginning in which we bring together the various types of heritage collections that TU/e possesses on a single digital platform: the TU/e Heritage Platform,” says Britte Sloothaak, senior curator Art & Heritage.

Artifacts, archives, architecture, memories, and anecdotes are all welcome. Submissions can range from an invention and an unforgettable lecture to a special corner in an old building or a student cantus. As long as the item tells a story about TU/e, it qualifies.

No AI

The KEC will first assess all submissions for authenticity. For this purpose, the committee has temporary support from Brianna Brinkley, assistant curator Art & Heritage. She will verify the origins of submissions using source materials.

Made-up or AI-generated items will not be considered. A selection committee will then choose the five most remarkable items—tangible or intangible. These selections will not be set in stone. Sloothaak explains: “We are creating a living collection from which a new Big Five will be selected every five years.” The 2026 edition serves as a pilot.

The curator emphasizes that this is not a popularity contest. The selection will not take into account how many times an item has been nominated. “We want to show how broad TU/e heritage really is. If we are surprised by what TU/e students, staff, and alumni nominate, then the pilot will have succeeded.”

Heritage specialist Erik Geelen adds that the pilot will be successful if it helps save heritage that might otherwise be lost. He can imagine students and staff nominating Thursday’s Plugged festival, or the beer-crate bridge-building competition from years ago. “Or the Tuna festival, which is as old as the university itself.”

Lack of space

Geelen knows that some heritage has already been lost during the university’s seventy-year history. “The old industrial machines that once stood in the corridors of Gemini were moved to a mining museum in Kerkrade. But whether they are still there...”

A lack of space is often the reason heritage cannot be preserved. For example, a beautiful scale model of a crane installation once stood in E-laag (now Impuls). Its current whereabouts are unknown.

For the Big Five project, the KEC is seeking collaboration with the TU/e Digital Twin Lab. “Because we don’t yet know which items will be included, the lab cannot begin investigating how to digitally represent them,” says Sloothaak.

Both Britte Sloothaak and Erik Geelen are convinced of the value of the Heritage Platform. “If you want to determine a vision for the future, it is important to know where you come from. One way to do that is by collecting and showcasing heritage. Heritage is not only there to be preserved—it tells us who we are.”

Anyone wishing to nominate a piece of tangible or intangible heritage can do so by emailing Brianna Brinkley or by filling out a form on the intranet.

This article was translated using AI-assisted tools and reviewed by an editor.