Hoogbouw Camping Nature City
WILLEM DE HAAN
2023
ART PROGRAMMING BY THE NDSM-WERF FOUNDATION
As a cultural season opener, Stichting NDSM-werf presented an installation by an artist in 2023 William de Haan at NDSM: a vertical campsite that addresses the fight for scarce space.
Previously, his work was shown on the international art route IJssel Biennale, where it was a response to the pressure on the landscape for agricultural production and recreation. At NDSM, Nature City takes on a different meaning. In a growing, densifying city like Amsterdam and in a rapidly developing district such as Amsterdam North, there is great pressure on public space. Space: physical and mental, is important for the quality of life in a city, but places for greenery, relaxation and recreation are scarce. With the work Nature City, De Haan playfully addresses a serious urban issue by imagining a possible but also alienating future scenario.
About the artist
In his work, multidisciplinary artist Willem de Haan (1996, NL) challenges socially conditioned and political rules of everyday locations. In a convincing, humorous and alienating way, the artist adds artificial elements to existing situations. His suggestive sculptural interventions refer to the use of props and sets in the film and theater world.
