E-volved cultures in Rotterdam

Now that exams are over, it’s time to refresh your mind with contemporary international art and design at the Art Rotterdam fair.

(Photo: courtesy of Coebergh)

Art Rotterdam is an annual international contemporary art festival exhibiting works of established artists, as well as introducing fresh contemporary art talent to the world through exhibitions and events, at a rather student-friendly entrance fee.
This year the fair will take place from February 9-12, at the Rotterdam Cruise Terminal, where over 75 national and international participating galleries will exhibit their work. With 55% of the exhibitions coming from abroad, Art Rotterdam is the most international art event in the Netherlands.

The festival itself is international student-friendly, as all of the exhibitions are suited for an English-speaking audience, says the event’s director, Fons Hof. Replying to the question of why international students should visit the fair, he adds: “The fair gives a good overview of what’s happening in the international art scene. It’s the place for discovering new forms of art. Additionally, the festival takes place in a beautiful setting, with a magnificent view of the city: the Cruise Terminal is still used as the departure hall of the Holland America line.”

So what kind of events can visitors of the fair expect? Exhibitions of established contemporary artists are a must, but the fair also aims to introduce young, up-and-coming talent to the contemporary art scene. After these exhibitions, some of the paintings, sculptures, photographs and other art works will be auctioned off for expected prices ranging from 50 to 2,000 euros.

In addition to the exhibitions, there will be several stage performances and film screenings. A highlight is the performance of Swedish artists Leif Elggren and Kent Tankred, also known as the duo Guds Söner (The Sons of God). Their stage performances focus on themes such as love, violence, food and royalty, while giving equal roles to physical action and accompanying soundtracks.

Another popular activity for students is ‘Rotterdam by Cycle’, on Saturday February 11, a bicycle tour past the Rotterdam artists’ initiatives and residence places, including a visit to the WildBookMarket, presentations of the international guest artists, and snacks and drinks at special locations along the way.
The WildBookMarket is another popular recurring event, at which visitors are able to browse through the best art books presented by national and international artists and small publishing companies.

For the political student, the Rotterdam-Art-Adventure-Food (RAAF) will open its doors for the first time, with the first in a series of politically-minded group exhibitions on the theme of education, titled ‘The Right to Answer’. RAAF includes a lunchroom, exhibition space, and cultural information point for Rotterdam South.
The spotlight event of Art Rotterdam fair, however, as recommended by Hof, is the work of artist duo Driessens & Verstappen, who will present a selection of their oeuvre at the fair’s central location. Their work focuses on evolving, responsive, regenerative art, with the idea that machines in combination with software can create living, changing art pieces that often stray away from the artist’s imagination. The exhibition presented at Art Rotterdam is titled ‘E-volved Cultures’, and is an artificial landscape being created in real-time through a software representation. This
landscape is created by virtual organisms interacting with and modifying their environment.

Information on events and tickets available at www.artrotterdam.com