Complete transformation for Rotterdam's Submarine Wharf - Elmgreen and Dragset

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen

Complete transformation for Rotterdam's
Submarine Wharf
Elmgreen Dragset
The One The Many
28 May­25 September 2011

The Submarine Wharf in the harbour of Rotterdam went through a surreal total
transformation. This metamorphosis is the responsibility of Elmgreen
Dragset
who realised the large-scale art project, organised by Museum Boijmans Van
Beuningen and the Port of Rotterdam.

The art duo Michael Elmgreen (Denmark, 1961) and Ingar Dragset (Norway,
1969)
have created a vast exhibition featuring a specially designed block of
flats,
an abandoned funfair ride and numerous other elements. The exhibition 'The
One
The Many' transforms the 5000m2 former Submarine Wharf into a deprived
neighbourhood with a sinister atmosphere. These are the fringes of society:
a
tough underworld with dubious characters and shocking activities.

Thanks to the exhibition 'The One The Many' this summer all eyes are once
again focused on the RDM complex in Rotterdam's harbour. Until 2014 Museum
Boijmans Van Beuningen and the Port of Rotterdam are collaborating on a
series
of large-scale art projects in the Submarine Wharf. The series kicked off
last
year with Atelier van Lieshout's exhibition 'Infernopolis', which De
Volkskrant called 'this summer's absolute art hit'.

It's never too lateŠ
The work 'It's Never Too Late to Say Sorry' by Elmgreen Dragset is also on
display elsewhere in Rotterdam. The work consists of a glistening display
case
on a dark granite plinth, housing a polished stainless-steel megaphone. Each
day, just before midday, a person will appear, open the door in the case and
remove the megaphone. At exactly twelve o'clock the person will exclaim
through the megaphone the short and simple phrase: 'It's never too late to
say
sorry'. This 'performance / sculpture' will be performed daily in Rotterdam
for at least a year. The work was commissioned by Sculpture International
Rotterdam.

Highly praised
Elmgreen Dragset have worked together since 1995. They live in London and
Berlin. Their art works express their critical relationship to Western
consumer society. In 2006 the duo produced the widely praised exhibition
'The
Welfare Show' at the Serpentine Gallery in London. In 2009 they presented
'The
Collectors' at the 53rd Venice Biennale and in 2010 'Celebrity ­ The One and
the Many' at the ZKM in Karlsruhe. In 2003 they won the prestigious 'Preis
der
Nationalgalerie für Junge Kunst' and in 2009 they received the 'Special
Mention' at the Venice Biennale. Elmgreen Dragset have been selected to
create
a sculpture for the 'Fourth Plinth' in Trafalgar Square in London in 2012.

Turbine Hall versus Submarine Wharf
More than 20,000 people visited the Submarine Wharf in 2010. The press and
the
public compared the Submarine Wharf from 1937 with the Turbine Hall at Tate
Modern in London. The Submarine Wharf in the RDM complex is one of the Port
of
Rotterdam's initiatives to bring the public into closer contact with the
harbour.

This exhibition in the Submarine Wharf has been organised by the Port of
Rotterdam and Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, with a special contribution
from
the BankGiro Loterij and the Municipality of Rotterdam.

Note for editors
For more information and images please contact the Marketing and
Communications Department, telephone +31 (0)10 441 9561 or
pressoffice@boijmans.nl. On publication please mention: www.boijmans.nl
<http://www.boijmans.nl> .

For information about press previews and interviews:
http://www.boijmans.nl/en/384/perspreviews.
For more information about the Submarine Wharf and the RDM complex: Sjaak
Poppe, Havenbedrijf Rotterdam, +31 (0)10 252 1427,
s.poppe@portofrotterdam.com
www.onderzeebootloods.nl <http://www.onderzeebootloods.nl>