Dear All,
I am very pleased to invite you on 2nd September at 11 hrs. for the opening of my project, “The Bridge Is Open”, at Willem’s bridge, Amsterdam.
Please see the attached information below for details.
We will officially open the bridge at 11.30 hrs to view the work. I request you to please be there on time.
Look forward to see you.
Many Thanks,
Best,
Monali Meher
Bridges on the canals are a very strong characteristic of the City of Amsterdam.
Bridges are great architectural achievements that symbolize progress, growth and metaphorically talk about connection between places, cultures, people, bringing them closer, bridging the gap, involving trade and movement of traffic. Bridges have a big influence on our lives.
‘The Bridge is Open’, public space project by Artist Monali Meher, is about raising/ opening bridges in Amsterdam. Only when the bridge is open are the public able to experience the art-work on the raised part of the bridge, which becomes a vertical canvas.
With this project Meher’s idea is to place a text image on the underside of the bridge on the beam structure in between the niches and angles. The text follows this structural movement and becomes part of it. By using repetitive geometrical patterns throughout the whole surface, she intends to bind the whole image in a grid pattern.
The text evolved from films and newspaper. Some sentences can still mean a lot even though they are taken out of their actual context or story. It manifests itself in one or many meaningful reflections such as philosophical, humorous, mysterious, curious, questionable and unfolds hope, truth, motivation, position in the world and awareness of the present times we live in.
Her intention is to entice public curiosity and be drawn to something new on this big surface while standing still in front of the open bridge. It can be entertaining, inspiring and encourage them through the dialogue to think about the society they live in.
When Meher first came to Amsterdam in year 2000, she was rather fascinated and impressed by the movement of the bridge. The raised part of the bridge always seemed like a canvas to her. Whenever she had to wait in front of the open bridge, she fantasised and visualized different creative ideas on this construction. In 2002, Meher fascinated by this monumental drama, made a video installation called “Straat Opera” which was shown on the Stubnitz Ship at N.D.S.M. Amsterdam. The video was a representation of various moving bridges from all over Amsterdam and was used as a background for a dance performance.
When the bridge opens, everything stands still except the traffic on the water. The stillness becomes a sort of performance. The massive part of the street gets lifted vertically like a big jaw or flat mountain. The raising of the street causes a gap and freezes the flow of the traffic going across, resulting into an abrupt ‘still performance’ of people on foot, bikes, cars, buses, trams and other vehicles.
During the opening and closing of the bridge, different perspectives of this work will occur and it will also depend on where one views it from.
This project is funded by AFK (Amsterdam fonds voor de kunst)and Fonds BKVB.
Special thanks to: DIVV (Dienst Infrastructuur Verkeer en Vervoer), Waternet, Orio Tonini (Architect), Dock Westerpark, Watersportcentrum Westerpark, Stadsdeel West, Gemeente Amsterdam, Vertical Vision, SSP Amsterdam.