An Introduction
For some years now, Art Rotterdam has been presenting itself as the most important arts event in the Netherlands – who are we to doubt this? But one thing is certain: this week, one event follows another, and all the cultural and artistic organisations are present.
The main initiative is the Art Rotterdam fair with more than 10k visitors for each edition, but meanwhile a series of other initiatives strengthen Rotterdam’s position as an artistic community.
Next to Art Rotterdam Fair we point out the Rotterdam Photo XL & Haute Photographie fairs who will be able to captivate our audience.
Besides the fairs, Rotterdam Art week is also the time to open new exhibitions. That is why we will pay attention to the FotoMuseum and the new projects of the Kunsthal.
I know, this platform is limited to photography, which is why we normally do not discuss e.g. the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen. Allow me to make an exception here: if you are in the neighbourhood, be sure to take a look at the newly opened depot of the museum. An exceptional architectural design with an equally revolutionary character: the depot can be visited by the public so that the hidden treasures are on permanent display.
Rotterdam was almost completely destroyed during the Second World War. In contrast to other cities, no rebuilding programme (i.e. reconstruction into heritage) was planned – on the contrary, at present Rotterdam has a skyline of ultra-modern buildings alternating with historical legacy. Two of these iconic gems are locations for Art Rotterdam week: the Van Nelle building (1925-31) a world-class monument of functionalism and the HAKA (Chambers of Commerce) building dating from 1931 a historical landmark in the New Objectivity/ Nouvelle Objectivité style.
Rotterdam is a festive city during this week – so it offers a wide range of alternatives to all visitors objecting to a transatlantic flight to AIPAD.
Information on the week of Rotterdam Art can be found here (only Dutch & English)
https://rotterdamartweek.info/en/
https://www.artrotterdam.com/2022/04/22/art-rotterdam-week-aftermovie-2/
ART ROTTERDAM FAIR
Once again, Art Rotterdam will feature a wide selection of galleries from the Netherlands, of course, but Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Denmark, Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom, Slovenia and Switzerland will also be represented. A selection committee with internationally recognised members subjected the candidate participants to a rigorous selection process and thus guarantees the quality of the fair.
On the trip to Art Rotterdam, you will not only see established values: the Mondriaan Fund, an initiative to support young talent, is showing the exhibition “Prospects”, a breeding ground for young and exciting artists.
There is also the NN Art Award: an annual incentive prize for young talent. One of the nominees of this award this year is the young photographer Vytautas Kumža who dares to tackle one of the oldest problems of photography: the depth in the image. The result is innovative and at the same time… not reproducible in 2 dimensions. So only one advice – go and see for yourself!
Besides the main section, you can also discover a nice selection of installations by different art galleries & the Mondriaan foundation around the exhibition building. A description of artworks presented on the grounds next to the Art Rotterdam fair can be found here (only Dutch & English):
https://www.artrotterdam.com/2022/04/22/outside-works-at-art-rotterdam/
Art Rotterdam brings together many artists and art forms. Photography is not the main focus of the fair, we present a selection of galleries in alphabetical order here, adding only one image per gallery. In contributions later this week we will elaborate on their choice.
African Artist Foundation – Deborah Metsch;
AKINCI – Inge Meijer;
Bilhalle – Casper Faassen (solo)
Binome – Between Two: Laurence Aëgerter, Anaïs Boudot, Thibault Brunet & Marie Clerel;
Flatland Amsterdam – Paolo Ventura & Valérie Belin ;
Francis Boeske – Danielle Kwaaitaal & Lucia Tallova.
Madé van Krimpen – Liv Liberg
Galerie Caroline O’Breen – Bart Lunenburg, Anastasia Samoylova, Satijn Panyigay
Pedrami – Klaartje Lambrechts
Ravestijn – Inez van Lamszweerde & Vinoodh Matadin; Michel Lamoller, Nico Krijno, Maurice Scheltens (1972) and Liesbeth Abbenes, Theis Wendt
Ron Mandes – Gilleam Trapenberg & Erwin Olav
TORCH – Ellen Kooi
Wouter van Leeuwen – Bryan Schutmaat, Jeroen Hofman, Sanlé Sory & Hans van der Meer
Overview of participants: Artrotterdam.com/nl/galeries/
Catalogue: GalleryViewer.com
Tickets are only available online | € 22,50 per ticket | via Artrotterdam.com
Art Rotterdam
www.artrotterdam.com
Thursday 19 till Sunday May 22 2022
Van Nelle Fabriek
Van Nelleweg 1
3044 BC Rotterdam
t 0031 (0)10 742 02 58
[email protected]
Thursday 19 May 11.00 – 19.00
Friday 20 May 11.00 – 19.00
Saturday 21 May 11.00 – 19.00
Sunday 22 May 11.00 – 19.00
Nederlands Fotomuseum
The Verdict – Beyond reasonable doubt? Jan Banning & Christina Boyer until 19 June
Christina Boyer (1969, Columbus, Ohio) is convicted for the murder of her daughter Amber. The photographer Jan Banning happened to stumble upon this case, and his conclusion is: there is no evidence of Christina’s guilt, and her conviction is the result of a plea bargain which she decided to enter out of fear, due to the minimal defence by her pro bono lawyer.
Banning tries to formulate his decisions with images: his photos can be seen as interpretations. Some are documentary, because – however subjectively photographed – they depict an existing reality. Other photographs are visual constructions: staging, based on source research, on descriptions and memories of Christina Boyer or on combinations of both. The exhibition tells the story of how people can be crushed by systems that are so much more powerful than themselves.
The gallery of honour of Dutch photography
With a beautiful selection of 99 images, the exhibition sketches both the history of Dutch photography and it introduces us to the greatest photographers. Two birds with one stone, and the curators invite you to revisit as the images change regularly.
Nederlands Fotomuseum
Las Palmas,
Statendam 1,
3072 MD Rotterdam,
Tel +31 10 203 0405
https://www.nederlandsfotomuseum.nl/
KUNSTHAL
Claude Cahun Under the Skin 21 May – 28 August 2022
Under the Skin’ takes visitors into the world of French artist, writer and activist Claude Cahun (1894-1954). Over sixty photographs, photomontages, publications and archive material by this versatile artist illustrate her point of view on the exploration of different (gender) roles and identities, her involvement with the Parisian avant-garde and experimental theatre groups, the resistance work during the Second World War and Cahun’s outspoken ideas about the world around her. Most of the photographs in the exhibition have been enlarged using contemporary techniques to bring Cahun’s theatrical and poignant work even closer to the public.
Shine Heroes – Federico Estol – 21 May – 11 September 2022
Uruguayan photographer Federico Estol (1981) tells with Shine Heroes the story of shoe shiners in the Bolivian capital La Paz, and the suburb El Alto. Wearing their characteristic ski masks and goggles, each day thousands of them venture into the city to earn a living. These disguises ensure their anonymity while at the same time contributing to forge a shared identity and visibility in the urban landscape. Estol portrays them as superheroes, thus redefining the position of this marginalised group in society.
Haute Photographie
Until a few years ago the Haute Photographie fair had its home during Art Rotterdam Week next to the Fotomuseum Rotterdam. Now for the first time it’s being organised at the new location of Kahman Gallery Rotterdam. The place may not be familiar yet, but it is located next to the HAKA building where the Object exhibition (see above) takes place – this area is now known as M4H.
Haute Photographie is a boutique photography fair with the allure of a museum. It sets itself a goal to be a fair without booths, pushing the idea of an art fair to a new level. They present photography in the past (vintage), present (contemporary) and the future (talents). Amongst the great photographers and promising talents we find names like Albert Watson, Albarran Cabrera, Barry Kornbluh, Costanza Gastaldi, Joep Hijwegen, Linelle Deunk, Sante d’Orazio, Sara Punt, Schilte & Portielje, Souleymane Diaw & Takeshi Shikama.
Haute Photographie is seeking to create a new and total experience for both seasoned art collectors as well as budding photography fans. It is centred around a group exhibition, featuring works by the grand masters from the history of photography, to the youngest and most exciting talents working with the medium today. This collection brings together a select group of national and international galleries. Strengthened by a fascinating programme and a high-quality book market, visitors can explore and enjoy the many facets of fine art photography at the 5-day event.
It says it will be a meeting place for artists, curators, collectors – both young and experienced – and anyone with a genuine love for photography.
Tickets are available from https://hautephotographie.stager.nl/web/tickets
Entrance is free under the age of 16
Venue
Haute Photographie Rotterdam 2022
Keilepand,
Keilestraat 9
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
https://www.haute-photographie.com/
From Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 May, from 12.00-18.00, a bus service runs between Art Rotterdam (Van Nellefabriek, boarding point: Schuttevaarweg) and the M4H area, where Haute Photographie takes place (boarding point: Vierhavensstraat, in front of OBJECT Rotterdam (HAKA building). The two pick-up spots are clearly marked with Rotterdam Art Week scaffolding towers. This MINI shuttle is free for Rotterdam Art Week visitors (max 2-3 persons per ride).
Rotterdam Photo 2022 XL
While Art Rotterdam and Haute Photographie represents art and photography in particular supported and curated by established galleries, there are several side initiatives in the city.
One of the most exciting is Rotterdam Photo XL on the Willemsplein at the foot of the iconic Erasmus Bridge and next to the Museum Quarter.
Rotterdam Photo describes itself as an annual photo fair with a festival flair and declares that their objective is to organize an event that celebrates the spectrum of contemporary photography in all its diversity.
It wants to create the possibility for photographers to reach the general public as well as art professionals, proposing lower costs compared to the traditional art/photo fairs. Photographers can participate individually or on behalf of the gallery by submitting their works and projects via an open call related to the current theme.
From a broad range of submissions, the commission selected over 100 photographers to exhibit their work, based on the themes PLANET HUMAN and THE HUMAN BLUEPRINT. The exhibitions will be installed on both the inside and outside of the shipping containers
https://www.rotterdamphoto.eu/
Venue
Rotterdam Photo 2022 XL
Willemsplein
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
OBJECT DESIGN FAIR
Once again, the HAKA building is the venue for the Object design fair.
With 150 exhibitors, including 50 young talents, it is one of the most challenging events in the field of product, furniture, fashion, lighting ànd graphic design, and should not be missed.
Object is a curated fair, which means designers are carefully selected to keep the balance between well-known names and upcoming talents, different design disciplines and materials, applied design and more autonomous installations.
OBJECT Rotterdam 2022
HAKA-building
Vierhavensstraat 38-42
Rotterdam Friday
May 20th until Sunday May 22th 2022
10am – 6pm
Tickets (online and at the door) € 15,00, kids under 12 for free
An OBJECT ticket also provides access to the Euromast during the fair www.euromast.nl
As said above – a free shuttle service transports visitors form the Art Rotterazm Fair at the Van Nelle building to the M4H area (HAKA & Keilebuilding)
