SEGMENT XVII, 'PATRIMONIUM'

We were asked by the organisation ‘OpTrek’ to make a facade project in a neighborhood that was scheduled for demolition at the beginning of 2005. The purpose of the assignment was to make a work on the facade that would show a process related to this area. We decided to point out the contrast between the multicultural neighborhoods versus the old traditional Dutch public housing. In the multicultural area where we made the work you can find shopping streets that are richly decorated with a large amount of light boxes and bill boards with exotic signs and striking designs. Next to this you could find old traditional sayings engraved in stones that were inserted in the architecture a long time ago (1920’s), before the multicultural era of today.

We used the engravings ones more, when they demolished the houses, these text ornaments were never showed again. In this project we combined the old traditional Dutch sayings with the contemporary designs of the advertisement signs in the area. It became an installation of a large amount of light boxes, signs and other extensions that displayed the old Dutch sayings for the last time. We thought of this work as an contribution, some sort of temporary monument to the process of integration of different cultures and different era’s.

We were curious if this project would offend the Dutch heritage or would be seen as a denial of the new cultural influences. Or maybe it could be seen as a new starting point for the rebuilding/ renovating period of this neighborhood. With this work we wanted to raise questions concerning the Dutch patrimony and the value of the multicultural society of today.