BlowUp Art The Hague! A floating garden in the Hofvijver

Photo © Ronald Smits

BlowUp Art The Hague!
A floating garden in the Hofvijver
BlowUp brings Dutch Design to the Hofvijver (Court Pond), transforming it into a lush paradise of blooming inflatable artworks. This year, BlowUp Art takes center stage in the heart of the city at the Hofvijver, a historic location dating back to the thirteenth century. The temporary festival features fabulous inflatable artworks created by renowned Dutch designers such as Studio Job, Marcel Wanders, Sigrid Calon, and Studio Mieke Meijer, exhibited on a pontoon island. The greenery, resembling an artistic garden with water features, is meticulously landscaped by students of Yuverta’s ‘Urban Green Development’ program under the guidance of ecological landscape architect Deborah Treep and artist Frank Bruggeman.

Graphics © Wilmar Grossouw and Anya Danilova

Studio Job. Photo © Ronald Smits

Studio Job
— Like a Pan in Water

According to Job Smeets (1969), subjects like Suske en Wiske, Gerrit Rietveld, Biedermeier, or Elvis Presley are all perfectly acceptable. Job makes no distinction between high or low culture, classicism, or modernism. At Studio Job, work is done at a high level on unique pieces using the latest high-tech tools as well as traditional techniques that have all but disappeared in the Netherlands; bronze casting, stained glass, or enameling. Former everyday objects like a jerrycan or a pan are completely transformed, enlarged, bent, and if necessary, adorned with a golden nose.

With an eclectic body of work that strongly resembles a comic book, Job has evolved from a simple shed in Weert to a bona fide design
superstar with exhibitions in all major cities worldwide. And yes: the PAN, often highly polished in gold or bronze, frequently plays a significant role.

Marcel Wanders. Photo © Ronald Smits

Marcel Wanders
— Eggs

Marcel Wanders designed a collection of fantasy eggs. The egg shape is a recurring theme in his long career as a product and furniture designer. References to egg-like contours can be found in lamps, chairs, and candlesticks. The brightly decorated and reflecting eggs on the Hofvijver reflect the visitors and are actually portraits of passers-by in the heart of democracy: with opinions that sometimes clash, or get nudged to sway back upright.

In 2014, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam hosted a retrospective exhibition of Marcel Wanders’s oeuvre (1963). The common thread, starting with the iconic ‘Knotted Chair’ in 1996, is a narrative style of products: a stack of lampshades, oversized masks, a snotty vase.

Photo © Iwan Baan

The Hofvijver
— The heart of The Hague without nature is unimaginable

The Hofvijver is not merely a pond, but rather a vital lake ecosystem where various species of fish, including carp and pike, thrive. Additionally, it is home to aquatic plants such as water lilies and reeds. This dune lake is sustained by several streams, including the Wassenaarse Wetering and the Haagse Beek. The latter, formerly known as the Duinbeek, originates from the dunes near Kijkduin, providing essential water to the Hofvijver.

In the 13th century, Count William II of Holland erected his castle at the site of what is now the Binnenhof. A century later, Count Albrecht transformed the Hofvijver into a rectangular shape, a form that endures to this day. The quay walls surrounding the lake were constructed in the 17th century. Slightly off-center within the Hofvijver lies an island adorned with trees and plants. Although unnamed, every patch of greenery on this island is indispensable. Indeed, the presence of green spaces is vital for the livability of any city.

Studio Mieke Meijer
— Airboretum
A playful reinterpretation of the concept of an ‘Arboretum’—a collection of living trees—is embodied in an installation created by Studio Mieke Meijer. The installation features three air-inflated trees, each designed to evoke the essence of a living tree. These tree-like structures progress in successive dimensions, from trunk to branch, side branches, and twigs. This design concept reflects the logical coherence that is pervasive in nature, observable from individual plants to entire galaxies.

‘Airboretum’ aligns with the concept of Space Frames; spatial interventions showcased by Studio Mieke Meijer in places like Shenzhen, China, and King’s Cross in London. The Space Frames are modular elements scalable from a single lamp to a monumental installation capable of filling an entire square. The fusion of architectural imagery and object-oriented refinement stems from the backgrounds of product designer Mieke Meijer (1982) and her partner Roy Letterlé (1978), a civil engineer.

Sigrid Calon
— Gazebo
The inflatable artwork by Sigrid Calon pays homage to the small tower of the Prime Minister, an octagonal building believed to date back to the first half of the fourteenth century. Originally serving as a summer pavilion for the counts of Holland, Calon’s artwork evokes the symbolism of its original purpose. Moreover, it embodies the artist’s aspiration for politics to embrace a spirit of loving openness, echoing the sentiments of the tower’s historical significance.

As a visual artist, Sigrid Calon (1969) embraces the profound impact of intuition in her creative process. She believes in the expressive power of intuition, where the suggestion of images transcends literal narratives. Trained initially as a textile designer, Calon delights in manipulating colorful graphic patterns, which she endlessly varies. Her work reflects a meticulous attention to detail, ensuring that what captivates from afar remains equally compelling upon closer inspection.

the nature-inclusive garden

— About the nature-inclusive garden

In times of climate crisis, all innovations are aimed at using green spaces more intelligently to enhance livability in the city; think of rooftop gardens, urban farms, food forests, and climate control. This floating garden, featuring exciting water features alternating with willow bundles, serves as a temporary example to inspire visitors. A workshop by visual artist Frank Bruggeman provided the initial push for the planting, carried out by second-year students of the ‘Urban Green Development’ program at Yuverta, under the guidance of ecological landscapers Deborah Treep and Natascha van den Ban assisted by Stadskwekerij Den Haag and Engelsman Hoveniers.

A selection of artworks from previous editions of BlowUp Art The Hague 

T/ Adrianus Kundert, T.R Mike Rijnierse and Ludmila Rodrigues ‘Sunset’ M.L/ Yamuna Forzani, M.R/ Raw Color ‘Tubes’ L/Paul Cournet (CLOUD) L.R/ Steve Messam ‘Tunel’