The Netherlands is the country of water, no country in the world whose history is so intertwined with water as the Netherlands. Trade over water, protection against water, living below sea level. Water has shaped the Netherlands in the past and will continue to do so in the future. Due to the influence of Global Warming, water will increasingly take a prominent place on the world agenda, and Dutch expertise in water management will be used in more and more places due to rising sea levels. But water is not only a problem, it is also a gift, the gift of life. It is no coincidence that scientists first look for the presence of water when searching for life beyond this planet. Currently, in the energy transition, the possibilities of water, such as storing energy in the form of hydrogen, are being explored, and the pioneering role that the Netherlands can play in this field is creating numerous new opportunities. More than tulips, cheese, and Van Gogh, water symbolizes this country. With the Waterdrager (The Water-Carrier), The Hague will have a new landmark that embodies the significance of water for this country in all its aspects.

  
Commissioned by the city of the Hague

De Waterdrager - The Water Carrier @ Dutch government The Hague 

Concept design of a light art bridge at a golf resort in India for D’Trove.

Animation in SketchUp & V-ray render.

  
#LightArt #concept #BubbleBridge #Wilhelmusvlug

Bubble Bridge

Not so long ago the coming of winter also meant the promise of ice and the possibility of ice skating.

Because of Global Warming ice in the wintertime is not as common as it used to be.

Icebreaker reminds you of how the canals used to be frozen stiff and the spectacle of boats forcing themselves through the ice.

An Icebreaker breaking the pristine ice surface is disruptive and beautiful at the same time.

The spectacle of cracks appearing in the ice is exhilarating, leaving a peaceful and open waterway for others to pass through.

Boats cracking the ice of the canals have always called for strong emotions, not in the least of the lost promise of skating when the ice is broken.

Icebreaker is a nostalgic reminder of cold winters during which ice-skating was normal and of the fact that this now has changed because of global warming.

Ice cracking is a metaphor for things lost that cannot be repaired.

The feeling that climate change is evoking at this moment, the ice cracks, the planet warms up, is it irreversible?

Time to act!

  
IceBreaker was created as a site specific interactive installation for the Amsterdam Light Festival

  
#IceBreaker #LightArt #PublicArt #GlobalWarming #AmsterdamLightFestival #Wilhelmusvlug

IceBreaker @ Amsterdam Light Festival

The more progress we make in the 21st century and the more we allow technology and algorithms to mediate human interactions, the harder it becomes to truly connect with others, weakening the social fabric of our society. While genuine connection is still possible with friends and family, it is increasingly difficult to establish meaningful relationships with people outside our small private bubbles.

  
**Camp-Fire** is an interactive light-art sculpture through which I explore public space as a meeting place for human connection. A campfire was likely one of the first places where people gathered and bonded; with this installation, I aim to recreate that experience. Staring into the sculpted flames of this artistic fire instead of the screen of your phone makes it easier to engage with strangers sitting beside you. As night falls, the flames glow with warm, vibrant colors that respond to the movement of people around them. **Camp-Fire** is not only an artwork but also an exploration of new forms of contact and gathering.

  
I wouldn’t have been able to realize this version of Camp-Fire at Burning Man without the dedicated help of a group of artist friends who helped with prepping and the build at the Playa, The Reno Generator, the Black Rock Honoraria Art Grant from the Burning Man Organization and the donations of lots of friends and followers of this project.

  
#BurningMan #CampFire #PublicArt #LightArt #Wilhelmusvlug

Camp-Fire @ Burning Man

Blossoms are the first sign of the awakening of nature after a long hibernation and the start of a new cycle of life. Because of this blossoms and flowers are symbol of rebirth, beauty, love and death. Blossoms also transform into fruits and as so are a symbol for fertility and transformation. No wonder that all around the world blossoms, flowers and petals are used for rituals around the most basic aspects in our lives; life, death, love, passion, fertility, transformation and rebirth. In Bloom is an ode to all of these rituals. For me these multi colored petals and the seemingly random way they swirl through the air are also a symbol of the diversity of people in this city and the way they all choose their own path in life.

  
In Bloom premiered at the Amsterdam Light Festival 13 and is now part of the Light Art Collection.

In Bloom @ Amsterdam Light Festival

This a short video impression of my installation All my Colours at the I Light U festival in Utrecht, Netherlands. 

concept:

We all think that what we see is reality, but most people don’t realize that everything we can see and the way we experience these things are limited by our senses and our culture that learns us how to interpret what we see. Everybody thinks they know what a rainbow looks like, but except for humans and apes there are few animals who see a rainbow exactly the same as we do. A large part of the mammals have only two different kinds of a colour cones in their eyes which makes it impossible for them to see the red colour spectrum, while most birds are blessed with an extra colour cone which enables them to see ultraviolet light a part of the spectrum which is invisible for us.

All My Colours is a light art installation which enables you to see the colours of a rainbow through these 3 colour spectrums and make you think about the relativity of our sense of reality. People will experience the installation totally different from each view point and through each colour spectrum.

The soundscape for All My Colours is composed by Han Otten.

All my Colours - video impression @ I light U festival in Utrecht, Netherlands

During the period when Van Gogh lived in Etten and first emerged as an artist, he captured the surrounding landscape in a series of drawings, with pollarded willows and their distinctive bark textures playing a prominent role. He would later develop these irregular, striped bark patterns into his iconic painting style.

Inspired by the drawings Van Gogh created in Etten, I created a row of five monumental sculptures of pollarded willows made from stainless steel, black steel, and Corten steel. The characteristic bark texture of the willows, as depicted in Van Gogh’s drawings and paintings, is translated into an openwork pattern in the metal. During the day, light and shadow interact with the bark structure, while at night, integrated LED lighting creates a color palette reminiscent of Van Gogh’s later works. The intensity of the light adapts throughout the evening to the ambient light and the time of night.

  
#vanGogh #EttenLeur #Etten #PublicArt #PollardWillows #Sculpture #HandvanVanGogh #Wilhelmusvlug

De Hand van Van Gogh / van Gogh's Hand @ Etten-Leur

We all think that what we see is reality, but most people don’t realize that everything we can see and the way we experience these things are limited by our senses and our culture that learns us how to interpret what we see. Everybody thinks they know what a rainbow looks like, but except for humans and apes there are few animals who see a rainbow exactly the same as we do. A large part of the mammals have only two different kinds of a colour cones in their eyes which makes it impossible for them to see the red colour spectrum, while most birds are blessed with an extra colour cone which enables them to see ultraviolet light a part of the spectrum which is invisible for us.

All My Colours is a light art installation which enables you to see the colours of a rainbow through these 3 colour spectrums and make you think about the relativity of our sense of reality. People will experience the installation totally different from each view point and through each colour spectrum.

  
The soundscape for All My Colours is composed by Han Otten.

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