PROJECTS

Penningkunst van Elly Baltus

Wed, 2 Dec 2020 20:43:27 +0100

Lecture in FIDEM 2016, Gent.

Fri, 9 Sep 2016 10:00:42 +0200

ART SHOULD DISRUPT

Can anybody tell me what the size of this medal is and of which material it is made?
The answer is that the size of the medal is the projection that you see. And although you imagine you see bronze, the material is actually digital matter.

From now on this medal exists also in your mind. So clearly it exists.

Is there a reverse, you may ask? Yes the reverse is:

These images give the suggestion of a normal sized bronze medal, but all we are looking at are 0’s and 1’s.
We are living in a digital era.

Welcome to the world of conceptual art.

It sounds strange but in daily life we are not that far away from the conceptual. For example we have all agreed on a very abstract idea; a bank account.

On our computer screens we can open our bank accounts. We can read digitally the amount of money we possess, the amount paid out and the amount paid in. But these are only numbers that represent an idea. We don’t look at a pile of banknotes in front of us. In fact those banknotes don’t even exist.

Of course all artists work conceptually, but I would like to show you some medal artists, whose work uses a more enhanced form of the conceptual, than that used by traditional artists.

Tetsuji Seta, Happenings and me
James Malone Beach, Airport medal.
Otakar Dusek, Kursk 1943
Otakar Dusek, Jan Palach
Elly Baltus, Made by somebody else

There are two things these artists share; they produce adventurous medal art works and they share dedication to the medal art world. Also all the artists have used bronze (or silver) as a vital ingredient to embody their conceptual art medal.

There’s nothing spectacularly new, about concepts in coins and medals, the Romans already used concept in the production of their coins.

The value in silver or bronze wasn’t the only purpose of their currency. There was a dual value to the Roman coin. They were not only used in exchange for goods, but also to inform people in far corners of the Roman Empire about the change of emperors and battles won. Thus propaganda was carried by financial exchange. Increasing the conceptual understanding of the value of objects and their depictions.

Bronze, like silver, is a traditional material used to make coins and medals, in Roman times, in the Renaissance and is still used now. Good craftsmanship in bronze or silver, striking or casting gives an extra dimension to the design of a medal, and adds to its expression, its narrative – even its poetry.
However, contemporary medal making, can make use of many other methods, to deepen its expressiveness and enhance the reading of the medal.

On May 30, 2011 I received an email from the Teylers museum.

Tetsuji Seta won the Fidem grand prix in 2012.

I would like to highlight a series of medals he made, based, on events that happened simultaneously in different parts of the world and, in the garden of the artist himself. He calls the medals: -Happenings and me-

It carried the information that I had been nominated for the Jaap van der Veen/Teylers prize.

In order to produce a physical, bronze or silver work of art, Seta, it seems, randomly combines, more or less important events that happened somewhere in the world, with the findings of objects from nature in his garden or on his walks.
The basis of his work is the structure of Japanese poetry, the Waka or the Haiku. It contains the sensory experience of the poet and should refer to a time of year often by using a flower.

The next morning I found my goldfish, dead.

Seta combines in -Happenings and me-, event, location, found objects, text and the way of casting together to produce a sensory experience in the spectator, but also an abstract one that links space, and time, in that moment, and in Seta’s case, east and west. Poetry and the events melt together in the medal.

The noon of April 29, William and Kate rode in a carriage procession from Westminster Abby to Buckingham Palace
The evening of April 5, I was walking on the road connected with Buckingham Palace

In making these medals the artist needs to physically travel to discover the experience. It involves not only studio work, but also work to align the events.

Seta, links moments and time and makes significance out of them. However significance can also be found in processes over extended periods of time.

Another work of art that involves physical action outside the studio to create the medal is the work –Airport medal- by James Malone Beach.

The medal was first developed during a flight from Helsinki to the US. On this flight, he questioned how other nations viewed the US in these uncertain times.
During following flights Beach challenged the airport security with a weird object in his luggage, on which a text announced ‘This is not a Bomb’ clearly seen on the x-ray.

The object was black with bright text on it, and sprung out from the pale colours on the screen.
Beach questioned how security would respond. Would it be consistent from one airport to another?
Whenever Beach travelled with the medal, he documented how he was treated, and how the response to the medal was.

This photograph has been deleted because of legal actions of AFP/ANP
https://www.anpfoto.nl/search.pp?pictureid=365469892&ExtSrc=39&ExtID=000_Was3900724&page=1&pos=1#0

The physical medal, in this concept, is not the main or sole ingredient that classifies it as medal-art. The political content and the on-going interaction with people and situations are much more important and tell a much deeper story than the bronze object alone. What an exiting and interesting way of making medals!

But, it was rejected from US FIDEM in 2012.

As a result of this, Beach decided to give a lecture in Fidem Glasgow, about his experiences. Thus ensuring, people would still see and feel the impact of the medal.

Now, 4 years later and after all the changes in the world, the message of this medal has become even stronger and more crucial by questioning our views on immigration and violence.
However this medal has never been shown in a Fidem exhibition. Why not?

This is what we should be aiming for, a broader discussion about medal art.

Extended processes of time are interpreted by cultures in their history. Otakar Dusec fuses the difficult periods of Czech history, in a moment of time.

The medal –Kursk 1943-, shown in Fidem Tampere 2010, fits perfectly in the concept of using physical action outside the studio. Dusek’s work exists on the edge of medal art, but it incorporates very basic human commemoration rituals and symbols. Dusek uses performance and video as a tool to express these concepts, but he also uses media, to document his physical work, outside the studio. To create the medal Kursk- Dusek used the physical force of a T34 Soviet tank to mint the medal. By documenting this, he lets the spectator come very close and experience the meaning of a tactile subject. His medals are often based on political circumstances in the
turbulent history of Czechoslovakia.

The perfectly polished silver plaque declares its value, however the traces of the caterpillar tracks on the silver, scores violence and destruction – as if someone has spilled red wine on a white dress.

The whole performance of the tank destroying the silver plaque and the guys in army jackets guiding the tank becomes a crucial element in the experience of the medal and the awareness of comprehensive destruction.

Dusek won in 2011 the Jaap van der Veen/Teylers prize.

Another medal by Otakar Dusek is -Jan Palach, -Opus 13-. It is a post-modern portrait medal, of the Czech student who committed self-immolation in 1969 as a political protest against the brutal suppression of the Prague Spring. Besides its political content, the medal also contains a protest against imposing silence on artists in the Czech Republic of today.

Ironically enough this medal did not find its way to the international Fidem podium in 2016. Although the quality of the medal is perfect, the narrative is important, and the commemorative value is high, however due to the Fidem delegate’s choice, it wasn’t selected.
And we all ask -why not-?

Dusek made a video recording of the life of Jan Palach and the making of the medal.
You can watch it on my website, especially created for Fidem Belgium. It’s called fidem.nu the video of Jan Palach is also shown on YouTube.

The medal art developments I mentioned need a display of photographs, video recordings or other spatial elements, which the present Fidem exhibition space does not give the opportunity for.

Now, on a slightly different note;

When Marcel Duchamp exhibited his urinal in 1917, our conceptual ability was stretched to its limits. The visual arts were changed forever.

In his book -Playing to the gallery- Grayson Perry describes the artworks of great artists like Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons and Takashi Murakami as luxurious brands. He calls these artworks consumer goods.

In line with Duchamp, Murakami had a big show at the Museum of Modern Art in Los Angeles, and he actually had a real Louis Vuitton shop in the gallery, selling handbags as part of the exhibition.
With this work of art he tested the boundaries and crossed them, as Duchamp did.

I understand the point Fidem makes about the difficulty of providing space and special facilities for these conceptual medals. However rather than using that as a basis for rejection we should be trying to accommodate these medals, rather than abandon them.

Not all conceptual medals need these special facilities.

Understanding that moments in time in the work of Beach and Dusek were rejected for Fidem exhibition, I created a medal that was self referential, rather than a moment in time.

Using the Duchamp and Murakami concept I sent in, for Fidem 2016, a perfect bronze medal with the title, -Made by somebody else-. The medal was indeed made by somebody else, namely Carla Klein.

In physical form this medal meets the criteria of medal art perfectly. Also it’s bronze appearance fits perfectly in this Fidem’s theme.
But guess what…. it was still rejected.
When I asked why, the reason given was, that Carla would possibly object to showing her medal in Fidem. But for all I knew Carla was very happy that one of her medals was finally going to be shown in a Fidem exhibition again.

But, you can’t find it here. You will also not find Dusek’s medal -Jan Palach- here, just as you did not find Malone Beach’s medal in Glasgow.

As well as the link to Duchamp, this medal has a post-modern aspect in showing how an art-medal is used in the real world. Much more than other works of art the medal has a function as a gift or a prize. In this form the medal is moving from one hand to another, from one possessor to the other, without having been made by any of its possessors, even though it is used as a personal gift.
More than other forms of art, because reproduction is common in medal art, it touches lightly on what Perry describes as luxurious consumer goods.

The owners are far removed from the creators. In medals there is a long history of objects being made by somebody else. Medals are commissioned by somebody else, cast by somebody else, owned by somebody else and then given to somebody else. Then somebody else collects them. –Hence my title, made by somebody else-

This medal positions itself in the centre of the medal art discussion that has been conducted for the last 10 years in the Netherlands. Carla Klein, who made this medal, became the controversial centre of it. As a result, her medals, until now, were not shown at a Fidem exhibition, or anywhere else in the Netherlands, for a decade.

The complicated multiple layered interpretation of this medal makes it central to conceptual medal art, while the physical presence remains just like any other medal.
That’s the reason I am here. To show, just like James Malone Beach did in Glasgow, a medal that did not make it into Fidem, and to highlight the disruptive elements of conceptual medal art.
These medals disrupt the cosy familiarity we have with medal art, and forces to re evaluate and see anew. This is the disturbing element, which challenges old complacent assumptions.
I would argue, that it is exactly this form of medal art, which demands a place in Fidem, and not rejection.

Although in its constitution Fidem writes that it aims to make the medal known and assuring its place among the arts, Fidem it does not seem to back up important developments in medal art.

It is time to re-evaluate criteria for entry into Fidem.

www.fidem.nu
Join the discussion

Postcards Rubbing Project

Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:04:25 +0200

The ‘Postcards Rubbing Project’ is an on going project of bronze plaques placed at interesting places in the Netherlands and abroad.
After Den Haag, Egmond is the second place to find these bronze postcards. By taking a piece of paper, put it over the bronze plaque and rub the paper with a pencil or other crayon you can make yourself a postcard of the place you’ve been.
The postcards can be kept in a box, send by post or hung on the wall in a frame.
Original boxes with a sketchbook and a pencil can be bought in galleries and shops in the neighbourhood around the plaques.
In Egmond, Galerie de Kapberg and Hotel Zuiderduin are the places to buy these original, numbered and sighned boxes. In Den Haag the place to get your rubbing is the Koninklijke Academie. (KABK)

Soon there will be a map with the exact GPS points of where to find the plaques and selling points of the original boxes, in the neighbourhood.

Wander app. Hoeverture Egmond

Sun, 22 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0200

With the app you can walk through the village of Egmond aan den Hoef. Standing in front of the historical buildings you can listen to the stories the present-day inhabitants of these buildings tell you about the historical houses they live in.
The app tells the history of Egmond aan den Hoef. Through these tales the audience slowly discover the layers of history and importance of the village.
On the screen appears an exhibition of artworks from local artists. In this way, multi layer information is given through a multi media device.
The tales are supported by a version of Beethoven’s Overture Egmont. Musician Bel van der Linden changed parts of the Overture into modern day pop genres.
You can walk the route with your mobile device, but you can also experience the walk through the historical village at home. The disadvantage is that you will miss the beautiful environment of the village.

To download the app:
Go to google Play or app store on your smartphone or tablet. Search for -Hoeverture-. Download the app and install. Open the app and you are ready to use it.
Because of the size of the app. the advice is to download the app with a fixed network. After that the app. works off-line.
Alternatively you can use this link to download the app.

http://hoevertureegmond.nl

The app is in Dutch, as soon as the money is found, a translation in English and German will be made.

To make the Egmond experience complete. On the route 6 bronze plaques are placed. In stead of taking pictures or buying picture postcards, you can rub the images from the plaques and take them home as a visual memory of the experience.

It took two and a half years to build the app. Hoeverture Egmond. And with the enthusiasm of the people of Egmond aan den Hoef it would never have been finished.

Synopsis:
Egmond is an interesting historical village; a hidden pearl in the county of North Holland. The history dates back to the year 700 when 12 missionaries came from England to Christianize the coastal villages. One missionary stayed and found a church. Around 900 the earl of Holland, Dirk 1 found in Egmond a monastery first for nuns, later changed by his son Dirk 2 for monks. He called the Abby after the missionary St. Adelbertus.
Dirk 2 appointed a farmer, called Evil Wouter, to protect the Abby. When the farmer gained more power he build a wooden castle and separated from the monks. Around 1200 the castle burned down after an argument with the duke of Loon. The son of the farmer, Willem, rebuild the castle, this time he used bricks. The next generation of gentlemen’s farmers of Egmont gain more power and married daughters of rich earls in the Netherlands and abroad. One of the farmers called, Lame Jan, gained his county of Egmont by protecting Maximilian of Austria during the Crusades. He renovated the chapel of Egmond.
The next Dukes of Egmond intermarried into wealthy families. This means that nowadays nearly all the European dynasties have a connection with the Dukes of Egmont.
The last Duke was Lamoraal of Egmond 1522-1568. (His mother was Francoise of Luxemburg) He was commander in the army of William of Orange during the 80 years war against Spain. He was involved in the resistance movement in Holland against the occupation of Philips the 2nd of Spain. In 1568 he was beheaded by Philips on the great market in Bruxelles. In 1775 wrote Goethe a tragedy on this episode in history. Based on this tragedy Ludwich von Beethoven wrote around 1810 his famous Overture Egmont.

These are not the only famous persons and events that make Egmond a place of interest.
In the following decades numerous famous people visited or lived in Egmond. One of the most famous is the philosopher Descartes. He lived for a couple of years in Egmond, until he was invited by the Queen of Sweden to live at the Swedish court to educate her. Isaac Le Maire, founder of the VOC and less glamorous the inventor of short selling. He was the father of explorer Jacob Le Maire who’s name is given to The Street of Lemaire at the most southern point of South America.
At the end of the 19th century a colony of American and English artists took Egmond as a base to explore out door painting activities. George Hitchcock, Geri Melchers and others stayed in the buildings that are still present in Egmond. Florance Upton, one of the artists, did not only paint, she also wrote popular childrens books about the Golliwogg dolls. The stories were based on the time Florance lived in Egmond. Claude Debussy wrote his famous ‘Golliwogg Cakewalk’ based on these childrens stories.
Paintings of ‘The Egmond School’ are now found in famous collections all over the world. Even at the time the artists were settled in Egmond their paintings were popular. Empress Sisi of Austria visited Egmond to buy paintings from this extraordinary group of painters.

Other famous people who lived in Egmond were, Johan Kieviet, writer of childrens books. Two of the books contain stories about Egmond. One of them is about the castle. Cornelis Jetses came on holiday to Egmond when he drew one of his famous school pictures. The one where a monkey is sitting on a roof. The house is still in Egmond.

All this is enough reason to spend an app on. Hopefully it will stimulate you to know more about Egmond aan den Hoef. I hope you will enjoy listening to the app.

GIFT BOX

Thu, 3 Jan 2013 16:33:06 +0100

Han, from Lasercrafts, a small company in Amsterdam, did a marvelous job cutting the layout for a gift box out of brown cardboard. I designed and drew the layout in Illustrator, but to fit the box perfect, a 3D model will show where the difficulties are.
Han’s laser cutter made this process easy and quick. It showed my mistakes immediately and recovered them.
The gift box will contain a plan of the walk through Egmond, a pencil and a couple of paper sheets. These are the ingredients people need on their walk through Egmond.
The brown cardboard box looks like a treasure box but also resembles a brick from the near by castle. The historical and ethnological information given on the walk will interest different age groups. It is designed for school children but also adults will enjoy this walk.

Another difficulty to find out about is, how to cast bronze plates containing drawings of Egmond. As in Finland they will be placed along the route, adding an artistic touch to a historical walk.

Updates about the development of the walk will appear frequently under ‘projects’.