Wilhelminaday

Wilhelminadag celebrated for the first time in Rotterdam

The first Wilhelmina Day on the Rotterdam Wilhelminapier will be a fact on Friday 30 May, around 17.30 pm. On that day, the time capsule in the quay wall of the Queen's Head will exist for exactly one year. Time capsules play a game with time, in which remembering and forgetting go hand in hand. The program of the first Wilhelmina Day offers various ways to commemorate and to keep the memory of the time capsule alive. It will be a special birthday!

What about the Wilhelminasteen and the time capsule again?

On 30 in May 1891 visited the 10-year-old Queen Wilhelmina Rotterdam. The visit was under the strict direction of Regentes Emma and is seen as the start of the PR machine around the House of Orange. The Wilhelminasteen recalls this occasion in which she gave her name to the Wilhelminakade. Part of the ceremony consisted of placing a small time capsule.

After a few decades of oblivion, almost a year ago, on 30 in May 2013, the Wilhelminasteen was bricked back into the quay wall with great interest. An exact casting of the stone was placed next to the stone, in which a large time capsule was stored this time.

The Wilhelminasteen and the time capsule are part of the work of art that is special in several respects In Memory Of Things To Come by Arnoud Holleman, commissioned by the Center for Visual Arts Rotterdam. Not only did he give the Wilhelminasteen a new meaning, but he also made a work of art that will only be completed in more than 120 years, when the time capsule on 30 may be opened again in May of the year 2135.

The only person who knows exactly what's in that capsule is Arnoud Holleman. A number of objects are known, such as the 1000 questions. Holleman: “1000 questions about the future were devised for the content of the capsule. Rotterdammers were allowed to put a burning question to the future last year, so questions to the residents of the city in the year 2135. ”

From the questions, indestructible letter garlands were produced that all went into the capsule. The questions provide an intriguing picture of the here and now. Whether Holleman will lift a tip of the veil about the rest of the contents of the capsule will become clear during the talk show that can be heard via Radio Wilhelmina on www.wilhelminasteen.nl.

Wilhelminadag 2014 with varied program

On 30 May 2014 we celebrate the first anniversary of the artwork, by reflecting on the past, present and future of this special place in Rotterdam. On this first Wilhelminadag there is a varied program with the participation of many.

Movie
The audio-visual duo Urbi et Orbi, known from Summer guests and the Kennedy memorial in Dallas, shows a short film about the sealing of the capsule.

Talk show
A radio talk show takes place in the library of Hotel New York between 18 and 19 hours. Mirjam de Winter speaks with, among others, Royalty expert Dorine Hermans, interior designer at Rotterdam Jurgen Bey and artist Arnoud Holleman. In the audience surprise guests who are all involved in the pier in one way or another.

Radio Wilhelmina / Webiste Wilhelminasteen
Radio Wilhelmina, the internet radio station from and about the Rotterdam Wilhelminapier can be heard on www.wilhelminasteen.nl. Listen to beautiful conversations and stories about the past, present and future of a unique piece of Rotterdam. For the first Wilhelminaday on 30 in May 2014, Team Wilhelmina is working with local radio station OPEN Rotterdam. From 26 May you can listen to daily reports, except online also on 93.9 FM.
In addition to OPEN, Team Wilhelmina has close ties with RTV Rijnmond. A number of long conversations from the Rijnmond Staat Stil program, about the future of Rotterdam with Inez Weski and Riek Bakker, among others, can also be heard on Radio Wilhelmina.
On Wilhelminadag itself, the public is welcome to attend the recording of the Wilhelmina radio talk show in the library of Hotel New York. Presenter Mirjam de Winter speaks with Orange Biographer Dorien Hermans, designer Jurgen Bey and artist Arnoud Holleman about the ups and downs of the pier.

Start 17.30, admission free. Hotel New York, Koninginnehoofd 1, Rotterdam.

Transfer to Municipal Archives

On the first Wilhelmina Day, the official handover of a document that records the existence of the time capsule and the rules of the game in the municipal archives also takes place. Jantje Steenhuis, director of the Municipal Archives, says: “This is a unique case, also for us at the archive. Most archives will open after 20, 50 or 75 years, while this archive will be revealed at the same time as the capsule in 2135. We have never experienced that before. ”

Club Wilhelmina
In order to involve Rotterdammers in the importance of the stone and the capsule, Club Wilhelmina was founded that afternoon, a club that will reflect on the past, present and future of the Wilhelminapier. Holleman: ”Club Wilhelmina does not commit to anything, just occasionally reflecting on the thought of the time capsule and possibly laying flowers on May 30th. And gazing over the water from the Queen's Head, musing on the past, present and future of Rotterdam. It is a way to keep the capsule alive, but in a contemporary way. ”

Flower offering
After the talk show in Hotel New York, a flower offering will be brought to the stone and the capsule in a typical Rotterdam 'harbor way'. Pupils from primary school De Schalm who played such an important role in last year's sealing come with their wreath. The 'Wilhelminapier pioneers' from the very beginning, Dorine and Joan de Vos, also participate in this special floral tribute and musical ode to the most beautiful place in Rotterdam, according to some.