Historical migration stories
Stories are immaterial heritage, and in that sense the Red Star Line Museum manages an atypical collection. We collect and manage written documents and audiovisual testimonies that document and tell the story of the Red Star Line. We are still looking for testimonies that help us reconstruct the history of the Red Star Line.
Contemporary migration stories
In addition to historic testimonies about the Red Star Line, the museum also collects contemporary stories about migration. After all, the story of the Red Star Line is only one story in a long history of migration.
To make these stories visible and tangible, the museum uses items from the collections of other municipal museums and from the rich collection of Robert Vervoort, placed with the non-profit organisation Friends of the Red Star Line. These collections mainly consist of memorabilia and souvenirs from the shipping company.
The posters, folders and postcards that attest to the shipping company’s ambitious marketing campaigns are a very special part of these collections.
Artists
Several Antwerp artists are also highlighted in the museum. The coming and going of emigrants was a source of artistic inspiration for many artists. The atmosphere of the port and the hordes of emigrants that filled Antwerp’s streets have been immortalised by a lot of artists in drawings, paintings, poetry and prose.
