Fifty-five young artists have been invited to work in the tiny Tower Room of the impressive estate of VondelCS this year, initiated by the AVROTROS radio program called Opium. In silent seclusion, each artist worked on a project for one week. Curator Aynouk Tan and Studio KNOL were asked to bring together all the different works of the tower artists in an innovative exhibition.

Multitasking
Due to our continuous internet browsing, the impressions that we take in are becoming more and more fragmentary. Where we would once read one newspaper article in five minutes, these days we are behind the screen with seven tabs open and at the same time dividing our attention between incoming texts, mails, likes and comments. From vertical depth we shift to horizontal volatility. This is the starting point that is used to design the expo; bringing forth a new way of experiencing art.

Tan: “Our horizontal way of navigating – volatile and in random order – allows space to make personal connections. There is no paved path: everything exists next to each other and everything is equally important. ”

The art is displayed like physical screens, opened at the same time. Some artworks are literally cut to pieces in the exhibition, like these fragments of information. By climbing towers, built especially for the exhibition, visitors can view the works of art from a different perspective and get an overview of these ‘windows’. Neon green plays an important role, referring to the green screen that adds a virtual layer to real things.

Visitors are guided with three routes along the many works, but while they follow their paths, they might get lost between the fragments.

Initiator AvroTros: Fieke de Boeck
Curator: Aynouk Tan
Spatial and graphic design: Studio KNOL
Foil and prints: Studio GK
Towers: Fons Venner + Bert van der Beek
Platforms: Shami Durrani + Guus van Beers
build-up support: Studio Sans Plus
Special thanks to: Aref Dashti