Probably one of the most timely museum openings in a very long time and destined to become a cultural destination, FENIX, the new art museum about migration in Rotterdam opens today, Friday 16th May, in Rotterdam.
Located in a restored historic warehouse of 16,000 sqm dating from 1923 which has been transformed in a radical design by Ma Yansong of MAD Architects, the internationally acclaimed Beijing-based architecture practice. FENIX is directly opposite the headquarters of the Holland America Line (now a hotel) which transported thousands of Dutchmen and women to America and Canada to start afresh in the New World. In recent decades, most of the traffic to Europe’s largest port has been in the opposite direction. Rotterdam is now home to 170 nationalities.
Fenix is the first cultural project in Europe designed by MAD architects. You can see its architectural masterpiece, the Tornado, an organic, dynamic structure evocative of rising air. This double-helix staircase climbs from the ground floor and flows up and out of the rooftop onto a viewing platform hovering above the city. You get dramatic views across the River Maas and of Hotel New York, the former headquarters of the Holland America Line.
The museum opens with three exhibitions:
All Directions showcases over 150 artworks and objects ranging from the historical to the contemporary, drawn from the Fenix collection and acquired over the past five years. The artists featured are from across the globe, including Francis Alÿs, Max Beckmann, Sophie Calle, Honoré Daumier, Jeremy Deller, Rineke Dijkstra, Omar Victor Diop, Shilpa Gupta, William Kentridge, Kimsooja, Laetitia Ky, Steve McQueen, Adrian Paci, Cornelia Parker, Gordon Parks, Grayson Perry, Ugo Rondinone, Yinka Shonibare, Alfred Stieglitz, Do Ho Suh, Bill Viola, and Danh V.
The exhibition includes a series of new works specifically commissioned by Fenix from artists based in Europe, USA, and Asia exploring their views on and personal stories of migration. They are: Beya Gille Gacha; Raquel van Haver; Hugo McCloud; Chae Eun Rhee; Martin and Inge Riebeek; Ari Versluis and Ellie Uyttenbroek; and Efrat Zehavi.
It is also interspersed with a collection of personal mementos, gathered from the people of Rotterdam and telling individual stories of migration, alongside important historical artefacts such as a section of the Berlin Wall, a migrant boat from Lampedusa and a Nansen passport from 1923, an internationally recognised travel document that was issued to stateless refugees after World War I.
The Family of Migrants, inspired by Edward Steichen’s Family of Man, one of the most famous photographic exhibitions of all time, which was first shown at MoMA in 1955. This new exhibition features a selection of the most striking photography on the subject of migration, bringing together 194 photographs from 55 countries taken by 136 photographers. The works range from 1905 to the present day and are a mix of documentary images, portraits and journalist photography drawn from international archives, museum collections, image banks and newspapers. Photographers featured include Abbas, Eva Besnyö, Chien-Chi Chang, Fouad Elkoury, Robert de Hartogh, Lewis Hine, Ata Kandó, Dorothea Lange, Steve McCurry, Yasuhiro Ogawa, Emin Özmen and Sergey Ponomarev.
The Suitcase Labyrinth, a monumental interactive installation made up of 2,000 donated suitcases thatbrings to life a collection of personal histories from countries, cultures and communities from around the world. The collection ranges from large leather trunks with elaborate fittings to small, battered cases bearing stickers of their destinations. Some were handed down through generations alongside stories of life-changing relocations, others were more recently acquired. A number of suitcases, originally from Rotterdam, have been donated from the USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, returning now to their original port of departure. Visitors will be accompanied by an interactive audio tour, revealing select personal stories about the suitcases’ past owners and their journeys of love, homesickness, hope, and longing. The Suitcase Labyrinth also features (Kindness) of (Strangers), a work by Chilean artist Alfredo Jaar.
Plein on the ground floor of Fenix, measuring 2,275 square metres, is conceived as an indoor city square. It will serve as a space for connection and exchange, curated for and with Rotterdam’s many communities and free for all. It will host large scale events, explorations of different styles of food culture, community meetings, performances and events throughout the year. It will have a kiosk in which visitors can read newspapers from around the world and buy a drink or snack.
The museum’s retail and dining options include O Café and Bakery, led by the Michelin-starred Turkish chef Maksut Akar, and Granucci Gelato, a gelateria on the museum’s quayside serving award-winning artisanal ice cream by the Granucci family who have been making gelato in the Netherlands since 1929. The Espresso Bar is located within the first floor gallery space of the museum and offers views across the city. The museum shop is located in the main entrance area and features tableware, games, food and other items to create a sense of home and belonging.
‘Migration stories are the heartbeat of Fenix. We’ve woven them into every element – whether it’s the magic of Ma Yansong’s architecture, the memories evoked by the artworks on display, the freely accessible Plein, or the gelateria by the Granucci family. We want everyone to feel welcome.’
Anne Kremers, Director of Fenix,
Fenix is funded by the Droom en Daad Foundation, founded in 2016 and led by Wim Pijbes, former Director of the Rijksmuseum. The Droom en Daad Foundation is helping redefine Rotterdam for the 21st century – developing new kinds of arts and culture institutions and fostering new creative talent that reflects the city’s diversity, its spirit and its history.
MORE: fenix.nl
