Art and Environment

Assignment 1.2: First Site Literature Research

Feyona Voerman, s4885066

David Hut, s4965779
Sofie Kuipers, s4759559
Stella Ladielli, s4834526
Caroline van Aggelen, s4784383

Date: 30 April 2023

For this part of our research, we decided to use the website Delpher to help us find the earliest
documentations of Aardzee. Dealing with our found sources in a chronological order, we start with
discussing an article (fig.1) published in the NRC Handelsblad, a daily Dutch morning newspaper, on
the 30th of October in 19821. Written by Bas Roodnat, he starts the article by introducing us to The
Observatorium by Robert Morris (fig.2). The work was constructed in 1977 and was the first of a
series giving flat polders artistic character. The construction was the reason for the project group
‘Beelden Buiten’ by CRM at the time, a group that had the goal of putting together a collection of
large outdoor plastics, to contact the National Office for the IJsselmeer Polders. The engineers were
interested in the visual elements in 'their' area, and when plans were made to extend the series of
works of this kind they were told to twenty-five young artists, of which sixteen of them showed
sufficient interest to participate in an excursion in the polder a few years later. Afterwards, seven
artists submitted a total of fourteen ideas executed in sketch form, from which four were ultimately
selected for implementation. One of those plans was Aardzee by Piet Slegers. The Aardzee by
Slegers, which was to be completed in the autumn at the time of this publication, is a landscape
project with hills and a water feature at the Vogelweg. It aims to break through the horizontal
monotony of the polder and to give an impression of the solidified old seabed.

2. Robert Morris, The Observatory,

1977.

1. Article by Bas Roodnat, 1982.

1
DE RESULTATEN VAN DE POLDER-EXCURSIE, "NRC Handelsblad", Rotterdam

2.
The second newspaper article we found on Delpher is from the Algemeen Dagblad from 28-06-1984
and is called "Gestolde golven in Flevoland” (fig.3).2 It starts out describing the artworks, which is a
perfect representation of how visitors at the time would describe the relatively new work. It mentioned
the small hills of land covered in plants, the straight lines of water, the thin paths and bridges, and the
shells on the ground, and how all this together forms the artwork right under our feet. They continue
to talk about how the work is meant to be a recreational and picnicking space according to the local
tourist office, and how there is even a playground to further fulfill that purpose. They call it a
‘noticeable interruption’ in this part of the province, probably as it is surrounded by farmland. Lastly
they describe what the work means as it “symbolizes the sea that used to calmly rippled there before”
and that the hills are the solidified waves”, and how with enough imagination you can see this vision.
On the left of the article is a picture of a woman from the tourist office standing in the landscape
(fig.4).

3. Gestolde golven in Flevoland, 1984

4. Photograph of woman from tourist office

2
GESTOLDE GOLVEN IN FLEVOLAND, "Algemeen Dagblad", Rotterdam

3.
The next source available is an article published in De Volkskrant, another Daily Dutch morning
newspaper, on the 8th of August 1986 (fig.5).3 Although this article covers interesting information on
other works, Willem Ellenbroek does not provide us with a lot more unknown information on
Aardzee. After briefly discussing its origin, Ellenbroek describes the site in a short sentence
mentioning the presence of cut-open dikes, with small paths and two bridges, where the water
penetrates but does no harm (fig.6).

5. Willem Ellenbroek, "Beeldhouwkunst in een land

waar de geschiendenis nog aan moet snuffelen", 1986. 6. Wim Ruigrok, Aardzee.

3
BEELDHOUWKUNST IN EEN LAND WAAR DE GESCHIEDENIS NOG AAN MOET SNUFFELEN, "De
Volkskrant", 's-Hertogenbosch

4.
The fourth article we found is from the newspaper ‘De Volkskrant’ published in 08-08-1986 (fig.7).4
The title is ‘DIE LAGE HORIZON GEEFT ALLES POWER’and is written by Willem Ellenbroek.
The text was written to give an overview of the different land-art works that could be found around
Flevoland at the time, since it was a relatively new province but had already acquired many artworks.
Aardzee is the first work they discuss (fig.8) and again focuses on how the work is made to look back
at what once was there, and is a solidification of the waves that used to be there. They describe it as
being a huge work and that its “timeless horizon” takes over the view, as it is the only artwork that can
be found in that polder area. The article thus mainly describes its impression and location. At the end
they mention how this work was where the planner for the artworks in Flevoland found the
inspirations to continue plans in the polder.

7. Willem Ellenbroek,"Die Lage Horizon Geeft 8. Photograph of Aardzee

Alles Power", 1986.

The article published on the 12th of May 1989 in “Het Parool” and written by Theo van Rhijn (fig.9),
discusses Aardzee in the context of underappreciated land artworks, of which people frequently do not
know about their artistic character.5 Van Rhijn states that Slegers wanted to record a 'solidified
movement' of the Zuiderzee waves in the old seabed. This led to the creation of the park with an
unnatural slope for Flevoland. The wave pattern can be recognized from a distance, but if you stand
inside the work, you will only see hills with very steep walls on one side. It can actually get quite

4
DIE LAGE HORIZON GEEFT ALLES POWER. "De Volkskrant", 's-Hertogenbosch
5
SUNSATION, "Het Parool", Amsterdam

5.
busy, which is the intention and goes hand in hand with the intention of making it a nice walking park.
However, most visitors do not seem to realize its identity.

9. Theo Van Rhijn, Het Parool article, 1989.

The sixth article (fig.10) we found was published by the newspaper Leeuwarder Courant on
14-05-1991 written by Sikke Doelen and was called "Kunst in Flevoland te boek".6 It writes about a
new book that was published as an overview of all the new land-art that was built around Flevoland.
The writer mentioned how there are many contemporary artworks being built in the new province as
the newly made free ground is perfect for building artworks. The book was presented at the same time
as the Aardzee’s ownership was officially gifted from the Rijkswaterstaat to the foundation
Flevolandschap, which from then on would officially take care of the maintenance of the artwork.

6
CULTUUR KUNST IN FLEVOLAND TE BOEK DOOR SIKKE DOELE, "Leeuwarder courant : hoofdblad van
Friesland

6.
 10. Sikke Doelen, Kunst in Flevoland te boek, 1991

The article in “De Telegraaf” (fig.11) published on the 15th of August 19917 presents the existence of
De Aardzee (fig.12) as an example of how polders can be and are used. The article is not of much use
as it is only eight sentences long and has no further useful information on Aardzee itself.

11. De Telegraaf article 12. Photograph of Aardzee

7
DE AARDZEE, "De Telegraaf", Amsterdam

7.
The last article we found (fig.13) is from the newspaper Algemeen Dagblad, written by Xandra van
Baarle and published in 09-04-1993.8 The title is Kunst en bollen in Flevoland and mentioned the
writer's experience of visiting the land-art works in Flevoland. She mentions how Piet Slegers
succeeded in creating a relationship between the new land and the vanished sea since the artwork is
not noticeable but still the biggest land-art work we had in the Netherlands. She describes the work as
being as boring and bare as the surrounding polder, and questions if the only object, a shed with lock
on it on top of one of the hills, is part of the artwork or just a maintenance shed. This article gives us
another look into how different visitors might experience the landscape, and what catches their eyes.

13. Xandra Van Baarle, Algemeen Dagblad, 1993

In addition to the newspaper articles that we found that provide us with a nice chronological overview
of news reports about the artwork over the years, we found very useful literature that takes us a step
further in understanding the artwork in its context. For example, the biography/overview of Piet
Slegers written by Jaap Bremer and Alex de Vries from 2004 is, in our view, the basis for a better
understanding of 'Aardzee'. The book offers an extensive description and interpretation of all
manufactured works of art by Slegers and also by 'Aardzee'. The book places the work of art in
context within Slegers' oeuvre and provides a clear description of the relationship between nature and
the history of the former Zuiderzee area.9 Interesting things that we found in this literature that we had
not foreseen in advance after superficial research is that Slegers himself saw the production of

8
KUNST EN BOLLEN IN FLEVOLAND, "Algemeen Dagblad"
9
Bremer, Jaap and De Vries, Alex, Piet Slegers, 2004, p. 86.

8.
'Aardzee' in 1982 as the crowning achievement of his extensive oeuvre.10 The question that arose for
us was what could be the reason that Slegers considered this his masterpiece? On the basis of the
literature, you could explain it secondary by saying that 'Aardzee' can be regarded as the absolute
poetic way of connecting the main themes in Slegers' work: light, water and earth. Or rather that the
work of art is the ultimate pursuit of the confrontation between nature and culture that comes out best
in 'Aardzee' in comparison with other works by Slegers.11 However, when reading the statements, we
did not get our finger behind it. The websites and the podcast included in the appendix did not really
offer a solution either. This missing puzzle piece can probably be explained by the fact that we have
not yet actually visited the place and therefore that we have not yet 'experienced' the artwork in real
life. But what we think is still missing and what we will hopefully find is an interview with the artist
himself. We notice that the lack of a primary source, such as literal quotes/explanations by the artist, is
a lack in the general picture of our research into 'Aardzee'. In our view, this could complete our
research and the picture of 'Aardzee'.

10
Ibid. and Schweiger, Robbie, "Aardzee 1982", published by Land Art Flevoland, 2016.
11
Ibid. p. 82.

9.
 The Appendix

Book-Fragments/ Research Papers about the artwork 'Aardzee’ Piet Slegers in

context

- Bremer, Jaap and De Vries, Alex, Piet Slegers, 2004, p. 78 - 86. Arnhem, Uitgeverij De
Zwaluw

- Brinkman, Marloes, "2.3 Publieke kunst in de natuur" in Kunst met de Natuur: De waardering
en beleving van Moeder Aarde, 01-08-2012, p. 15. Faculteit Geowetenschappen Universiteit
te Utrecht, Universiteits-pers Utrecht

- Kolman, Chris and Stenvert, Ronald, "Zeewolde" in Monumenten in Nederland, Flevoland,

2006, p. 78 - 79. Rijksdienst voor de Monumentenzorg te Zwolle, Uitgeverij Zeist/ Waanders

Newspaper articles about the artwork 'Aardzee' Piet Slegers in chronological

order

- DE RESULTATEN VAN DE POLDER-EXCURSIE, "NRC Handelsblad", Rotterdam,

30-10-1982, p. 6. Accessed on Delpher 29-04-2023,
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=KBNRC01:000028126:mpeg21:p006

- GESTOLDE GOLVEN IN FLEVOLAND, "Algemeen Dagblad", Rotterdam, 28-06-1984, p.

17. Accessed on Delpher 29-04-2023,
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=KBPERS01:003006023:mpeg21:p00017

- BEELDHOUWKUNST IN EEN LAND WAAR DE GESCHIEDENIS NOG AAN MOET

SNUFFELEN, "De Volkskrant", 's-Hertogenbosch, 08-08-1986, p. 17. Accessed on Delpher
29-04-2023, https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010879232:mpeg21:p017

- DIE LAGE HORIZON GEEFT ALLES POWER. "De Volkskrant", 's-Hertogenbosch,

08-08-1986, p. 16. Accessed on Delpher 29-04-2023,
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010879232:mpeg21:p016

- SUNSATION, "Het Parool", Amsterdam, 12-05-1989, p. 4. Accessed on Delpher 30-04-2023,

https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010833092:mpeg21:p004

10.
- CULTUUR KUNST IN FLEVOLAND TE BOEK DOOR SIKKE DOELE, "Leeuwarder
courant : hoofdblad van Friesland", Leeuwarden, 14-05-1991, p. 9. Accessed on Delpher
30-04-2023, https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:010567569:mpeg21:p009

- DE AARDZEE, "De Telegraaf", Amsterdam, 15-08-1991, p. 17. Accessed on Delpher

30-04-2023, https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:010646376:mpeg21:p017

- KUNST EN BOLLEN IN FLEVOLAND, "Algemeen Dagblad", Rotterdam, 09-04-1993, p.

21. Accessed on Delpher 30-04-2023,
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=KBPERS01:003280008:mpeg21:p00021

Websites about the artwork 'Aardzee' Piet Slegers

- Schweiger, Robbie, "Aardzee 1982", published by Land Art Flevoland, 2016. Accessed on
30-04-2023, https://www.landartflevoland.nl/kunstwerken/piet-slegers-aardzee/

- Fleurbaaij Kunst en Cultuur, "Aardzee", published by Flevoland Erfgoed, 2020. Accessed on

30-04-2023,
https://www.flevolanderfgoed.nl/home/landschapskunst/zuidelijk-flevoland-4/de-aardzee.html

Videos/ Performance/ Podcast about the artwork 'Aardzee’' Piet Slegers

- Timmerman, Rob, "Podcast Aardzee Piet Slegers met Rob Timmerman van Het
Flevo-Landschap", published by Land Art Flevoland, 2021. Accessed on Soundcloud
28-04-2023, https://soundcloud.com/user-129191601/8-aardzee-van-piet-slegers

- Omroep Flevoland, "Opknapbeurt landschapskunstwerk De Aardzee Zeewolde", published by

Omroep Flevoland, 15-02-2018. Accessed on YouTube 28-04-2023,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYAvM5ESQFE

- Omroep Flevoland, "Een akkertje voor de kunst", published by Omroep Flevoland,

20-06-2017. Accessed on YouTube 28-04-2023,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLudGKlgw10

11.
- Beckers, Feiko, "Being surprised is admitting you were wrong", published by Land Art
Flevoland, 2015. Accessed on Vimeo 28-04-2023,
https://vimeo.com/189330121?embedded=true&source=vimeo_logo&owner=46420555

Image List of the artwork 'Aardzee' Piet Slegers

Modern photograph of Aardzee

Photograph of Aardzee published in "Die Lage Horizon Geeft Alles Power" article

12.
Wim Ruigrok Photograph of Aardzee published in "Beeldhouwkunst in een land waar de
geschiendenis nog aan moet snuffelen"

Photograph of Aardzee published in "De Telegraaf" article

13.