Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis is a paper monument to the Oude Houthavens (Old Timber Port) in Amsterdam. It documents the once dilapidated neighbourhood becoming home to the largest and most expensive residential tower in the city, through a collection of 16 stories from local residents. All accompanied by the works of photographer and Houthaven resident, Robert Lagendijk.
Undertaken at Studio Paul, Amsterdam
With the neighbourhood changing so rapidly, it seemed a fitting time to immortalise the Houthavens in a paper format, capturing and preserving both the photographic development of the area, and the local experiences that came with it.
Wanting the format to reflect both the title and the changing nature of the subject, each of the 16 essays folds out from a conventional book, to an A2 poster.
The cut out illustrations on each of the covers were lifted directly from the surrounding area, hinting at the theme, and often featuring in the story.
To fund the production of 500 copies of Metamorphosis, we had to raise 10,000 Euros. Through the Dutch art kickstart website, Voordekunst, we were able to host and promote the project to a much larger audience, both in and out of the city.
After plastering the city with posters and flyers, we saw a surge in donations - not only did we hit the 80% needed to fund the project on Voordekunst, we beat it by a whole 2%. Thanks Mum and Dad for eventually buying a copy!
The Houthavens now has its metamorphosis documented and archived, with copies of the book found in the Amsterdam Museum, the City Archives, Het Scheepvaartmuseum, Foam and the Nederlands Fotografiemuseum.