Master's students from St. Joost use the latest technology to bring forgotten stories of special monuments back to life and artist Mandy den Elzen uses classical techniques to pay tribute to the diversity of Breda's wild plant species.
This is part of the summer program 'If monuments could talk', which is being organized in the run-up to the Open Monuments Days Breda, which will take place on 9 and 10 September. The special arrangement in the Grote Kerk Breda – is accessible from 1 July to 10 September.
Living tombstones (AR) – Master's students St. Joost
The Grote Kerk Breda is full of stories waiting to be told: for centuries, lives have been celebrated and commemorated within the church. But how do you make centuries-old stones speak? The Grote Kerk Breda, We Are Playgrounds, and St. Joost School of Art & Design joined forces for an innovative experiment. Using the latest Augmented Reality (AR) techniques, Master’s students in Animation bring the life stories hidden behind three of the 16th- and 17th- century gravestones in the church to life. Via a (free) app, you travel 400 years back in time using the latest technology.
Flora van Breda – Mandy den Elzen
As an artist, Mandy den Elzen works at the intersection of art, nature, science, and biology. Her work has already been exhibited at various locations around the world. This summer, Den Elzen pays homage to the diversity of Breda's wild plant species with her project Flora van Breda . By carefully describing, archiving, and conserving the discovered plants in collaboration with the Plant Working Group of the Royal Netherlands Natural History Society, Den Elzen creates a snapshot of the city's ecological heritage. The plants and their stories become, as it were, a monument dedicated to the importance of greenery in a city. In the Grote Kerk Breda, where a variety of flowers and plants can also be found, the preserved plants are brought together in a growing installation and supplemented with new discoveries throughout the exhibition. Pull up a chair at this plant ritual and be inspired by the investigative stories.
Collaboration Open Monument Days Breda, We Are Playgrounds and St. Joost School of Art & Design
In collaboration with a broad network of partners, entrepreneurs, educational institutions, artists, and social organizations, the Grote Kerk Breda is developing an innovative program that connects the centuries-old stories of the church and the city to the future and current events. There is an ongoing substantive collaboration with both Open Monumenten Dagen Breda and We Are Playgrounds to activate heritage in a dynamic way. Living Gravestones was created through a collaboration between We Are Playgrounds, St. Joost School of Art & Design, and the Grote Kerk Breda. Flora van Breda by Mandy den Elzen is presented at the initiative of Open Monumenten Dagen Breda in collaboration with the Grote Kerk Breda and is made possible by the Municipality of Breda.
More information: www.grotekerkbreda.nl/agenda/