This year, the Zuidplein is taking part in the art route 2013. The German artist Martin Pfeifle has made a temporary installation on the Zuidplein, transforming it into a public meeting lounge, creating, as it were, an abstract painting. WTC Amsterdam is proud to be able to link our name to this artwork. Henk van Os, professor of Art and Society at the University of Amsterdam and former Director of the Rijksmuseum, made the selection of pieces for ARTZUID 2013. At the request of ARTZUID initiator Cintha van Heeswijck-Veeger, Van Os selected 70 noteworthy pieces of sculpture that will enliven the Berlage Quarter in Amsterdam for four months starting on 22 May.

“ARTZUID is a great initiative,” Van Os says. “In previous years, it has earned justifiable international distinction. It is a great honour for me to be able to make the final selection of the images this year.”

Engagement
The theme for the open-air exhibition is ‘Engagement’. ARTZUID 2013 is showing work from 58 artists from 26 countries. They include non-Western artists such as Ai Weiwei, El Anatsui, Dinh Q. Lê, Pascale Marthine Tayou and Romuald Hazoumè. Their works are being exhibited alongside the work of Western artists like John Chamberlain, Chillida, Mario Merz, Erwin Wurm, Folkert de Jong and Frank Stella.

Route
This year, the 2.4 km long ARTZUID route is being set out along the Apollolaan, Minervalaan and the Zuidas. A ten-piece is also on display in the Vondelpark. The walk along the route takes approximately 2.5 hours. There is no charge. It is also possible to take a guided art history tour and a Berlage tours. A catalogue is available and an app with information about the sculpture has also been created. For more information and to see the route map, please go to www.artzuid.nl.

ARTZUID
The aim of the ARTZUID Foundation, which was founded in 2008, is to hold an easily-accessible exhibition of world-class art to give more attention to the monumental Plan-Zuid by Berlage and to present museum art to a new and broad public. The exhibition of the sculptures in the Berlage Quarter in 2009 and 2011, following the opening by Queen Beatrix, brought 350,000 visitors of all ages, from the Netherlands and abroad, into contact with the urban development cultural heritage. In 2011, the foundation was awarded the Europa Nostra Award and in 2012, it was the recipient of the Best in Heritage Award. Both awards are given by the European Union. In March 2013, ARTZUID was chosen by the residents of Amsterdam as the “Best Neighbourhood Initiative” as part of the Crown Jewels Programme of the Orange Fund. The idea of presenting a diversity of art forms to showcase cultural heritage in this way has attracted a great deal of interest abroad.