CO-CONSTRUCTING

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‘Co-constructing with the Architecture’

The Virtual Museum Zuidas was founded on commission from Zuidas Amsterdam to stimulate art and culture in the Zuidas district. One of its tasks is to realize art projects in public space of the Zuidas in collaboration with other involved parties. And one of its ambitions is for artists to not just place an artwork on a designated site but to co-construct the Zuidas along with urban planners and architects.

Although the Virtual Museum Zuidas concentrates on art and culture in the Zuidas and considers the entire area-under-construction as a living and continually changing museum, other rules and regulations apply in the Zuidas than within the safe walls of a museum. A museum’s purpose is to present autonomous artworks, which need only provoke thought or pleasure. Art in the Zuidas, and particularly public space designed by an artist, is additionally created with a function in mind. It coincides with the space where people meet, stroll around, participate in leisure activities and have a good time. The Zuidas aspires to integrate art in urban planning, architecture and public space through structural interventions. This policy involves very few strictly defined regulations or requirements for art; the idea is to come up with individual and unexpected solutions for each location and situation. Art can boost the liveability, vitality and recognizability of a location, give the new district character and identity, and create an atmosphere that makes people become attached to the area.

In those places where art contributes to the construction of the city, it is not a matter of high-flown theories or chasing after trends, which by definition are fleeting. It is a matter of making high-quality physical spaces that are suited to the area and that will still be relevant forty years from now. Artists are brought in at such an early stage that their work develops in tandem with the development of sectors, buildings, squares and lines of sight, and as such, they can make real contributions to the planning process.

This calls for artists who are capable of steering a course within such a process and standing firm in relation to others’ views on their own work. The goal is twofold: first, to enrich a newly constructed city with art; and second, to develop the artist’s work, which simultaneously contributes to the development of art itself. The proposed artists are selected for their unique thought processes and great artistic professionalism. They are capable of working on projects in teams, analyzing preconditions and requirements, and evaluating these sooner as stimulating than restraining factors.

CO-CONSTRUCTING WITH THE ARCHITECTURE - METHODOLOGY
To ensure that the art and the artist indeed become involved at an early stage, the ZVM looks for possibilities for art while plans for the various sectors are being formulated. The first priority is that art and site support and strengthen each other and that art makes the sector’s specific identity visible. For each site, if at all possible, a sub theme that distinguishes the location within the Zuidas is determined in close collaboration with all parties concerned – city, quarter, developers, possible owners and designers. Besides a distinctive theme, the ZVM also seeks out focus areas such as squares, parks, buildings and infrastructural junctions within the sub locations. After reaching a consensus, the opportunities and possibilities for art are recorded in a separate section of the Town Planning Programme of Requirements.
For each area and theme, the ZVM seeks candidates from the Netherlands and/or abroad who are best suited for that particular assignment. Selection of the artists takes place in consultation with the parties involved. The final product is created especially for the site and therefore unique, and contributes both to the Zuidas and the artist’s individual development. Due to the chosen strategy of consultation and durable development, the road to realization is usually relatively long. On the other hand, the artworks are inseparably and permanently connected with the city. Only if the Zuidas is demolished will they lose their function and power.
 

CO-CONSTRUCTING