KABK – IAFD «Back to the present»
By – Cynthia Bruinsma, Chen Jia, Mik Bakker
Images and drawings shown in diverse Alba Amicorum are translated into a series of films, were we grasp the historical symbolism and interpret it into topics from our contemporary life. We use a hands-on approach for the scenery and create a sustainable set design by working with left-over material from our academy.
We got intrigued by the expressive drawings and images from the Alba’s; Album amicorum of Hans Heinrich Oberhaupt (film 1), Album amicorum of Jacob Heyblocqs (film 2) and Album amicorum of Geertruydt van Engelsteedt (film 3).
Album amicorum of Hans Heinrich Oberhaupt (film 1)
‘In Paris, Oberhaupt had six gouaches painted on parchment added to his album, including a view of the Île de la Cité with the Pont Neuf and a picture of a wing of the Louvre. The most vivid picture is that of the Place des Vosges (then Place Royale) where, under great public interest, a not exactly gentle duel takes place.’
We are referring the dual as a strike. A fight for your believes or opinions.
We picked the strike about the housing market, that happened on 13 September 2021 in Amsterdam but also has been active in different cities and countries. The Place Royale is translating the high rents of housing today.
Album amicorum of Jacob Heyblocqs (film 2)
‘Fishing was a major industry at the time of the depiction of mackerel. The sea was then rich in mackerel and other kinds of fish. What is certain is that from the moment people settled on the coast, fish was caught, eaten, and traded. This is evidenced by archaeological findings of fish remains. Image in Alba Amicorum, Jacob Heyblocqs.’
In our contemporary time the fish industry still plays a major role in society. In contrast with the past, our sea is beginning to contain more and more plastic and garbage. A term for it has even been coined: plastic soup.
Any element, whether chemical or natural, that upsets the balance of the sea and therefor living creatures of the sea, is considered water pollution or simply a pollutant.
Album amicorum of Geertruydt van Engelsteedt (film 3)
‘Different men tried to win Geertruydt heart and a place in the Frisian noble family. In 1616 Frans Jongema had a gouache made showing Tobias crossing a river, accompanied by the angel Raphael, and provided it with a striking rhyme. However, the angel did not lead him to Geertruydt, but to Trijn van Ockinga, whom he married on 21 October 1621.’
We zoom in on the travel from Tobias. About the adventure he is taking and new experiences that going to happen. We link this with the fact that traveling has been difficult or even not possible during the Covid lockdowns. Tobias, the unfortunate young backpacker has been disappointed by the ‘cancelled’ red signs at the airport. His adventure must wait or gets another turn.
KABK – IAFD «Digging in the Archive»
By – Zhao Zhou
This project brings objects from existing Alba Amicorum’s to the present. Making research more physical again, reintroducing knowledge sharing and a more intuitive research method within the context of a library. This collection carries intriguing illustrations that beg to be defined. ‘In het Archief Graven’ treats the collection as an archaeological site. It turns visitors in researchers that interact with 3d printed matter instead of 2d. The materialised objects depicted from the original Alba Amicorum makes it possible to relate (in)directly with the past. Acting as the link between the present and then.
Alba Amicorum
How can we display the digital book? How can we discern the experiences and the essence of its content to make it a more present-day source of inspiration?
National Library of The Netherlands (KB) would like to show the young audience that its collection can stimulate the emergence of new types of contemporary (social, cultural, artistic) interactions offline and online.
The collaboration between the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) and KB national library in the context of the EU project Open Digital Libraries (ODL), will use the specific set of the so-called ‘friendship books’, alba amicorum as a casus to develop a set of interventions that could bring the library a step closer to a method for making digitized (and also physical) collection easier to access and more attractive to its users.
This project is coördinated by Rianne Koning (KB). The artistic and design experiments conducted by the 16 graduating students of Interior Architecture and Furniture Design and led by the team of lecturers consisting of architect Lada Hršak and interaction designer Pawel Pokutycki aim at the development of creative works that contribute to the discoverability and exploitation of the collection. Their learnings will provide valuable knowledge, a ‘food for thought’ in a process of redesigning library facilities and services in the future.
Kick-off project at KB
A physical place, KB Atelier will be provided for experimentations and presentations. The students can explore the possibilties of e.g. VR, AR and mixed reality solutions, data visualizations, and other media to be integrated into the spatial, physical context of the library as well as virtually, online.
