26 April Zuiderkerklezing: Failed Architecture

Michiel has been asked to deliver the so-called Zuiderkerklezing on April 26. His talk will focus on his research project Failed Architecture and is part of long-running lecture series at the Zuiderkerk (a 17th Century Protestant church in the Nieuwmarkt area of Amsterdam). Organized by the spatial planning department (Dienst Ruimtelijke Ordering) of the City of Amsterdam, the Zuiderkerklezing presents people with a refreshing look on urban developments. Entrance free, the lecture will be in Dutch.

More information below (in Dutch)

— Read more ›

3 April: YouNESCO-symposium

In 2010 Amsterdam’s 17th-century canal ring was added to the World Heritage List by UNESCO. On April 3 the newly established Stad-Forum, an advisory body for the City of Amsterdam and mobile debate platform, will organize a public discussion focusing on the opportunities and threats that UNESCO might pose to the city.

Being a member of Stad-Forum, and having written about UNESCO on several occasions, Non-fiction’s Michiel van Iersel will be one of the speakers, together with the deputy mayor of both Brugge and Amsterdam, providing an international overview of the ways in which cities deal with UNESCO. Please find more information below (in Dutch).

— Read more ›

9 December: a perfect day for a warm-up

A new Friday, but the same old balcony to celebrate the week and the weekend on. Join us after 5 pm for special Non-fiction drinks: an intimate preview on A Perfect Day, an exhibition with drawings by David Shrigley, Gummbah, David Bade, Raymond Pettibon and many others, that will take place 9 – 24 February 2012 at the Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam.

With talks by curators Olga Scholten and Paul Faassen, a short film programme, mini exhibition preview, drawing corner for children, live button creation, free goodie bags, plus sausages and Glühwein at the ice cold roof terrace at Museumplein – to make your day perfect.

—
Stay up to date with A Perfect Day via their website, Facebook and Twitter.

Curator’s talk: The Future of the Photography Museum

Foam, the Amsterdam based but omnipresent photography museum, is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. For this occasion, Foam has created ‘What’s Next?’, a project exploring the future of photography. Foam has posed the question of ‘what’s next?’ throughout this anniversary year to a variety of people in a variety of locations.

— Read more ›

Social weather

The ubiquitous use of mobile devices to document and distribute our daily activities in a never-ending stream of updates, checkins, tweets and retweets is generating an ever-expanding biosphere of social information.

This advancing ecosystem is growing into an adaptive system of informational weather. Technologist Ben Hammersley calls it ‘social weather’: “I want to feel my friends like I feel the weather.”

— Read more ›

Three years on, the great 11/11/11 anniversary party

There are many reasons why to throw a party on the 11th of November: the opening of carnival (in some parts of the Netherlands and Germany), Women’s Day (in Belgium), Single’s Day (in China) and, of course, all around the world many people commemorate the end of World War I.

— Read more ›

A new season, a new intern

Almost exactly a year ago we started our search for two interns. And what result we had: one is now traveling the world as a successful producer of zeitgeist music, the other graduated cum laude from the University of Maastricht and is now an official Non-fictioner.

Today, we continue our search for a new intern.

— Read more ›

Member of Stad-Forum: discussing the future of Amsterdam

Michiel van Iersel, co-founder of Non-fiction, was asked (and happily agreed) to join the so-called Stad-Forum, which was recently established by the City of Amsterdam as an advisory board, think tank and platform for debate focusing on urban developments and planning issues within the Amsterdam metropolitan area.

The Stad-Forum consists of three key members and a circle of twelve additional members, each with a different background, ranging from entrepreneurs and property developers to scholars, curators and artists. Michiel will focus on such topics as urban regeneration and temporary use of vacant spaces, the role of new and mobile media in the way we perceive and shape our cities and heritage and innovation.

The key members are Karin Laglas (Dean of the Faculty of Architecture at Delft University of Technology), Liesbeth Jansen (Advisor on Redevelopment, Cultural Heritage and Creative Economy) and Wouter Veldhuis (urban designer/architect & partner with MUST).

The aim of Stad-Forum is to identify the most pressing issues and developments that shape the future (appearance) of Amsterdam, facilitate a dialogue between the various stakeholders, and advise the City Council and college of Aldermen on future policy.

-

Stad-Forum is linked to The Department of Physical Planning (Dienst Ruimtelijke Ordening, or DRO), one of the City of Amsterdam’s centralized services that focuses on the organization and design of an attractive and spatially coherent city.

From September onwards Stad-Forum will actively address issues of contemporary urban life through public and interdisciplinary programs. Its goal is the exploration of new and innovative ideas, public engagement, and ultimately the creation of progressive solutions for life in Amsterdam.

The first public appearance of Stad-Forum will be at PICNIC Festival 2011.

Visit the website of Stad-Forum for more information (in Dutch only)

You can follow Stad-Forum on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

-