From June 10 you can see the wonderful works of Maarten Baas at Voorlinden. In his solo exhibition It’s about time he shows the most recent clocks from his Real Time series, the fascinating visual installation I think, therefore I was and the digital waterfall Second Nature. He is also making a new step in his Clay series especially for the exhibition with The Empty Chair, an extraordinary installation that reaches up to the sky.
10 June - 24 September 2023
Maarten Baas’ work lies somewhere between craft, design, conceptual art, theater, film and performance. At Voorlinden, he shows his Real Time clock designs, including recent versions of his Grandfather Clock, Paddington Clock and Children Clock. Each clock marks time with a recording of a 12-hour performance. He also shows new work from his Clay series; five seemingly teetering chairs with meter-high backs that he created especially for his solo exhibition at Voorlinden. The fragile clay works show traces of his handiwork and are about cherishing a childlike spontaneity and naiveté.
Maarten Baas: ‘We grow older, wiser and more mature, but with that we also lose our childlike energy. I am looking precisely for that naivete, for that wonder and curiosity.’
Left: Maarten Baas, Real Time Grandfather Clock – The Father, 2019
Right: Maarten Baas, Real Time Grandfather Clock – The Son, 2022
Photos: Courtesy of Carpenters Workshop Gallery
Flood of images
Especially for the installation I think, therefore I was, one gallery in the daylight museum will be darkened. The work consists of dozens of screens and a flood of images on which famous and less famous people say ‘I think’ – it’s ambiguous what is meant as it stands for both having an opinion and for considering or reflecting on something. With these fragments, which he found on YouTube, Baas aims to make a neutral observation of our times. ‘Having an opinion is almost a raison d’etre. Everyone has an opinion and can create a platform for themselves on social media. You can look at that cynically – everyone is an influencer – and at the same time it is great that this is possible. The question, however, is how are we going to solve common problems if everyone stays in their own bubble?’ said Baas.
Director Suzanne Swarts: ‘Maarten Baas offers a fascinating reflection on our perception of time and our zeitgeist.’
Order the catalogue!
Especially for the catalogue It’s about time, internationally renowned design expert Murray Moss wrote an ode to his good friend Maarten Baas. In his essay Time as experience, Thijs Lijster discusses the significance of Maarten’s clockworks and our perception of time. In addition to these substantive contributions, the catalogue contains photographs of all the galleries and exhibited works; ideal for enjoying at home. Order the catalogue now at shopvoorlinden.nl.
Order the catalogue
Maarten Baas, Real Time Clock Clay, 720 Children, 2022
Photos: Courtesy of Carpenters Workshop Gallery
Worldwide recognition
Maarten Baas (1978) lives in Utrecht and works in Den Bosch, the Netherlands. He graduated from the Design Academy Eindhoven in 2002 with the series Smoke, for which he processed design classics such as the Rietveld chair with a gas burner. With the blackened furniture he became world famous. His work is included in collections of the MoMA in New York and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Many travelers to and from the Netherlands are familiar with his Schiphol Clock, the three-meter-high clock that stands at Schiphol Airport since 2016. In it, Baas paints and removes the clock hands in real time with a paint roller and polishing cloth.
Stills Maarten Baas, Confetti Clock, 2020
Courtesy of Carpenters Workshop Gallery
Header image: still Maarten Baas, Paddington Clock (2021)