Project “NIMBUS”

These buildings were created around 1939-1940, not to function as a bunker but as a place where soldiers could hide in case of artillery fire. We lacked places to take cover due to the flat landscape in case of an attack. My aim was to make a work that respected the history of the building as well as reflect on present day life in the Netherlands.

The result is a interpretation of the typical backyard that you can see throughout the country, specifically situated in the summer with attributes that involve swimming and a carefree day. It is a snapshot of all the conveniences we can enjoy today because of the hardships that happened in the past strangely placed on an unreachable place in nature, at the Vrederijk estate who commissioned this work. The work questions the relation between the history and the present, the private and the public domain, the duality between times of peace and conflict and my interpretations of what I consider Dutch visual language.

The title "NIMBUS" is the Latin word for (rain)cloud and reflects on the typical Dutch complaining about the weather but also refers to the beautiful compositions of these clouds that inspired so many old masters to paint them.