Frans van der Avert has been appointed as general director of Paleis Het Loo. Van der Avert will succeed Pien Harms, who has held this position ad interim over the past twelve months following the departure of Michel van Maarseveen.

In recent years, Frans van der Avert was the owner of Frens & Co: a collective in strategy issues and marketing and communication challenges, particularly in the cultural and heritage sector. From 2019 to 2021, he was director of Paleis Soestdijk (Soestdijk Palace) and responsible for the preparation of the new destination of the Palace. Van der Avert started his career at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. He was responsible for communication and education at the Hermitage Amsterdam (now H’ART Museum) and subsequently made the transition as director of amsterdam&partners, which focuses on Amsterdam’s reputation management, visitor information, hospitality and resident participation. Frans van der Avert is currently a member of the Supervisory Board of the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam and a member of the Amstelveen Advisory Board of Culture (AAC).

As of 1 August, the management team and board of Paleis Het Loo constitutes of  Frans van der Avert and commercial director Pien Harms.