October 2020
Change
54/02
Change
We live in turbulent times, times which create circumstances where we don’t quite know where we’ll be in just a few short months. While viruses and protests lay siege on the world we ask ourselves, what will change? We live in eternal flux, but we live in the tangible evidence of the past.
Editorial team
Christopher Clarkson, Federico Ruiz, Inez Margaux Spaargaren, Robert van Overveld
With contributions from
Jonas Althuis, Nathan Kramer, Juan Benavides, Jack Garay Arauzo, Sevince Bayrak, Jorge Mejía Hernández
Cover design by
Editorial team
Editorial
Today's edition is about change. Change is everywhere and always, but what else can we say than the standard, wide-angle sayings? Let's start with the following idea. There is a famous poet in Holland, Jules Deelder, who wrote a poem about death. We replaced the word "death" with "change", made it a bit shorter, and this is the result:
Change is here
Change is there
Change is anywhere
Change is everywhere
Change is small
Change is good
Change is music
Change is sweet
Change is necessary
Change is hard
Change is strong
Change is bad
Change is life
Change is faithful
Change is sudden
Change is round
Change is Obama
Change is wise
Change is time
Change is you
Change is me
Change is faith
Change is Trump
Change is coming
Change is future
Change is empty
Change is invisible
Change is now
Change is ...
Change is ...
Change is ...
Change is ...
Change is …
The last 5 spots are open for you to fill in. Change is a lot of things, many times change is wanted, other times it is the thing we fear the most. Many of us have a problematic relationship with change. There are times that we want to change, let's say when we try to turn frequently exercising into a habit, and fail. Other times, change is forced upon us, and we have hard times accepting it. And then there is also the change of you as a person physically, take a look at a picture from 2015. The latter is derived from the change within the physics department, entropy, which is again a different form of change.
If we need to conclude that change is indeed in everything, then we better make sure that our relationship with change develops, improves. We, therefore, offer you this magazine full of articles composed by people who are shedding light on change… for a change.
We wish you the most fun reading another one of Bnieuws'.
Contents
BK Report
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The year is 1842, and you’re excited because the university in town is opening. And you’re especially excited because you’re going to study at it! That’s right, you’re on track to becoming a civil servant in the Dutch East Indies. And it is a great day to be white.
The year is 2020, and you’re excited because today you have been accepted at the 2nd best architecture university in the world! That’s right, you’re on track to becoming an architect for the Dutch nation. And it is a great day to be white.
BK Report
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Imagine that someone would place a surveillance camera next to your house without communicating anything to you. They even decided to use your house as an energy supply. Believe it or not, our dean and his team faced a similar situation four weeks ago.
The Berlage x Bnieuws
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Following Bêka & Lemoine’s remote lecture “Homo Urbanus,” part of this semester’s Berlage Keynotes, they took a moment to speak with us, reflecting on their work in the wake of the pandemic, on the moving image as a medium for architectural representation, on proximity and intimacy in the filming process, and thoughts on some magic keys.
From the editors
pg.
Dream
Take a large piece of land. Then, eliminate any possibility of having a reference point, erasing differences and making every part the same as the next one. No landmarks, no remarkable moments; a seamless sea of similarity, boredom embodied in a horizon. That is the Netherlands for me.
BK Report
pg.
On the 24th of September, the first BK Talk took place, the first in a series of debates organised as part of the public programme of the faculty. The event, titled “We matter: Designing the inclusive world” and organised by Stylos, revolved around the themes of the inclusion of minorities, both in the design of the built environment and the Faculty of Architecture.
From the editors
pg.
Safe at work, in public and transit. Just as airport security in the Netherlands was permanently changed after the threat of terrorist attacks, the public environment will now have new procedures to protect users from infection and disease.
Spotlight
pg.
Pandemic has unveiled the fact that it is essential to have an adequate amount of open-air areas for the whole population, that is homogeneously spread in the city. Pavements that people can walk without touching each other, parks and squares that let the elderly and kids spend time outdoors safely... For us, architects, it is not easy to turn this crisis into an opportunity but pandemic gave us the capability to reclaim public space.
Pen Pal
pg.
We posed a question on Instagram stories:
If our followers (you) could change the colour of the orange hall, what would it be?
We received many answers, and the verdict is in.
The favourite colour for the Orange Hall is:
Pen Pal
pg.
Cities are full of surprises, mostly pleasant, sometimes unpleasant or even boring. All these elements combined form a complex whole, which is hard to grasp for the human mind. Relying on your phone to get around in this complex whole, however, leaves you with a shallow image of a city. I think that it is nowhere comparable to the experience of inhabitants, which bothers me. Therefore, I would like to introduce you to the concept of “getting lost”.
pg.
‘Artefact’ is a recurring two-page spread, which features a beloved object presented by one of the BK City staff members. Every month, the ‘Artefact’ contributorship is passed on someone new. This months’ artefact is from Jorge Mejía Hernández, who is a professor in the chair of Methods and Analysis.