In the light of the art cuts and the rise of ultra-neoconservative ideas by the Dutch government, Ann Demeester tries to assess the country that we are living in right now. And asks: can a revolution happen in reverse?
In the current issue of Metropolis M we have put together a 'protest' segment, asking twenty representatives of the Dutch and international art world to give their response to the budget cuts for the arts passed by the Dutch government. This is the response of Domeniek Ruyters.
The concept of the creative city, which has become something of a directive for ambitious city councils throughout the Netherlands, does not necessarily lead to a prosperous future for art and culture. The writers’ team, BAVO, describes the city politics of Rotterdam as a form of self-colonization being forced on all its inhabitants. They sketch an image of a city whose unstoppable creative appetite is alienating it from itself.
