De Westersingel – The International Sculpture Route

As mentioned before was Rotterdam titled Cultural Capital of 2001 and for this reason did the Westersingel get a more prominent role in cultural Rotterdam. The Sculpture route that is very popular with the tourists starts from a little further than Central Station and leads to the museum park. Would you love to follow the whole route? Take a look at www.openbarekunst.nl/routes  for the international route or any other sculpture routes through the city.

De singel (=Canal) was created because of the ‘Water project’ from the 19^th century. The plan was designed in 1841 by the architect Willem Nicolaas Rose, who worked together with Jan Arent Scholten. This ‘Water project’ had three functions:

·         Drainage of the rainwater and garbage

·         Dumping of garbage

·         Source of drinking water

This plan was made to prevent any cholera outbreaks that haunted Rotterdam in the 19^th century. These canals would help, because they were connected with the Maas so that enough clean water would be able to flow into the city. Between 1870 and 1900 there were mansions built at the canal. These are still to be seen today, because the Westersingel wasn’t hit by the bombardments.

Seen in cultural sense, the canal got interesting in 19898, when it became part of the sculpture route ‘Sculptures in the City’. This was a large open air exposition throughout the whole city. A few of these sculptures are still part of the current route. A few of these remaining sculptures are: De Kringloop van Frans en Marja de Boer Lichtveld and The Long Thin Yellow Legs of Architecture van Coop Himmelb(l)au.

In the year 2000 and 2001 the canal was renovated. They built a terrace where most of the current sculptures are placed on, hence its name: sculpture terrace. At the moment there are 17 sculptures on the Westersingel and is the perfect walking route for a lovely autumn day!

Would you love to live near the Westersingel in Rotterdam? Check our website DomicaRotterdam!

Museumpark, part 3!

It's unbelievable how much the Museumpark has to offer us! Today we’ll describe the last two museums at the park!

De Kunsthal

Since 1992 the Kunsthal opened it’s door for the public. Since then there had many interesting expositions of different genres. They had old masters, forgotten cultures, fascinating pictures, innovative design and contemporary art. The interesting thing about this museum is that they have 3300m2 on exposition space, this gives them the opportunity to, at the same time, show different art movements. This is also the reason the Kunsthal attracts su

ch a wide public.

So what are the current expositions in the Kunsthal?

Rudolf Steiner, Alchemy of the Everyday

For the first time in The Netherlands, the Kunsthal presents an overview of the broad, encompassing work of Rudolf Steiner(1861-1925). Steiner was one of the 20th century's most significant and influential reformers, and his legacy is as relevant today as ever. Steiner served as a source of inspiration for some artistic giants including Piet Mondriaan, Wassily Kandinsky and Josef Beuys, and still does so for many contemporary artists and designers, such as Olafur Eliasson and Konstantin Grcic. The exhibition presents a rich and extensive collection of furniture, models and blackboard drawings, offering a fascinating insight into his life, work and sweeping intellectual legacy.

Design Art 115 years VIVID

15 years ago the gallery VIVID opened its doors, one of the first galleries on the border between design and art. The Kunsthal shows 15 Dutch (Rotterdam) and international artists and designers that have previously been sold in the gallery. Over the years the gallery has become much more than only that, it built a national and international meeting point and a platform for lively discussions about the border between design and art.

Definitely worth a visit!

Love & Marriage, Paul Breuker

As part of the national picture week with the theme ‘look my happiness’, the Kunsthal presents Love and Marriage by Paul Breuker. Paul has been a wedding photographer for the last twenty five years, and presents the most special moments of before and during the wedding ceremony. The exposition gives an overview of heartwarming pictures.

Natural historic Museum Rotterdam

The Natural historic Museum Rotterdam is the only of its kind in the region. Because of its special attention on nature and the history of nature of the region, but also the rest of the world, it’s especially fun to visit with the whole family! The museum is different from the rest of its kind because they have a dynamic collection, an active research department, and a different view on the every surprising nature.

Next to a the large standard collection, there are also changing expositions. Currently, till the 7^th of December 2014, there is the exposition Window victims. This expositions, of photographer Andre van Soest, shows multiple birds who fell victim of flying against windows. Part of this is also a picture of the famous ‘Trauma gull’. This gull flew against a trauma helicopter in October 2011, unfortunately the bird passed away, but the trauma helicopter as well had to make an emergency landing.

What has your favorite museum been so far?

Would you like to live in Rotterdam? Take a look at our website Domica Rotterdam!