Tagged: infrastructure

Map of the metro network of Rotterdam, The Netherlands as it may look like in 2050, with three new lines and some smaller extensions

1. January 2020

The Rotterdam Metro in Past, Present and Future

The Rotterdam metro network is the oldest in the Netherlands. With more than one hundred kilometers, five lines and seventy stations, it is also the most extensive metro network in our country. How did that happen? What are the expectations for the future? And couldn’t that map of the line network be a little prettier? I’ll answer those questions in this blog post. The beginning The Rotterdam metro was officially opened on February 9, 1968. On that day trains started running on the first section: six kilometers, seven stations, from Central Station to Zuidplein. I was there, together with my… Read More

Artist impression of Terminator, the city moving accross Mercury from the science fiction novel 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson

Space art

25. January 2018

Terminator, Urbanism on Mercury

A few days ago American writer Kim Stanley Robinson shared on his Facebook page an artist impression that I made a few years ago, featuring Terminator, the mobile city on Mercury from his science fiction novel 2312. Robinson called it a beautiful visualization; or well, actually his literary agent called it that, but of course she wouldn’t have done so if the author didn’t agree. Enthusiasm by the creator of the concept, that is of course a nice compliment for an impression artist. I made the illustration two years ago after reading 2312. For some reason Robinson’s work often inspires… Read More

Photo made from one of the platforms on Utrecht Central railway station during the blue hour with the platform canopies, the station hall and the City Office

Photography

22. January 2018

Photography on Railway Stations: Do you Need Permission?

Is it allowed to make photos at Dutch railway stations? Good point. I recently asked myself that question when changing trains at Utrecht Central Station. I had about ten minutes untill the train to Rotterdam would roll in. Just enough time to take some pictures. The hour, just after sundown, and a beautiful sky asked for it. Station hall and City Office So I walked to the end of the platform, put my camera on my mini-tripod and made two photos. First the one above with the platform canopies, the station hall and in the background the City Office. And… Read More

Light trails from cars in the tunnel under Koninginneplein in Venlo at night with slow traffic next to the tunnel.

Design / Photography

21. November 2017

Venlo revisited: the Koninginneplein Tunnel

The tunnel under Koninginneplein (or should I say Queen’s Square?) in Venlo was completed in 2011. It ensured a smoother and prettier transition between the railway station and the city center. Through traffic went underground; from now on pedestrians could easily and safely walk into the city. Glass panels My Royal HaskoningDHV colleague Mari Baauw was the architect of the project. I had the honor to design the glass panels in the railing between the underpass and the ground level. Six years later It was not the only reason, but the Koninginneplein tunnel was my main goal when I traveled… Read More

Corten steel wall under van der Louw bridge in Rotterdam with root shaped openings shaping the word ROTTE-DAM

Various

14. October 2016

The Wijnhaven effect

Why is it easier for our eyes to recognize certain patterns when we see those patterns on a photograph instead of seeing them in real life? Three examples and an attempt to explain the phenomenon. The extended Willems Bridge, it was a weird name for the bridge across Wijnhaven. Especially after the Willems Bridge itself was relocated two hundred meters further upstream, only connected to the extended portion by a strangely twisting road. A good reason to rename it Andre van der Louw Bridge, after the man with the moustache and the pipe who from 1974 to 1981 was mayor… Read More

Sunset behind the new city bridge De Oversteek (The Crossing) in Nijmegen as seen from a little beach on the banks of the river Waal

Photography

6. May 2016

The New Bridges of Nijmegen

When I visited the Room for the River project in Nijmegen, a year ago, I decided I had to come back after completion of the work. And so it happened last week, a day with four seasons, which resulted in very photogenic weather. I came back with a memory card full of pictures, especially of the five new bridges in the area. River park Nijmegen now has a beautiful river park in the heart of the city. Although at some places it still looks a bit new and barren; grass, flowers and other vegetation are still working to recapture the… Read More

Photo of the Marstunnel in Zutphen looking from Noorderhaven and De Mars towards the city center

Photography

3. January 2016

Marstunnel Zutphen: a Colorful Underpass

Since I was in the neighborhood, I took the opportunity to visit the Marstunnel in Zutphen. Another recently completed project in the east of the country in which I’ve put an lot of hours. Among other things, I made the artist impressions for the project when I was working at Royal HaskoningDHV. Mars The name Marstunnel has nothing to do with the Red Planet and also not with candy bars. It refers to business park De Mars (The Swamp). The new tunnel connects that area, and the new district Noorderhaven, with Zutphen’s scenic old town center. It replaces the level… Read More

Impression of The Sulawesi Space Elevator, with a rotating space station and solar panels in the foreground, the Earth in the background and the cable with elevator cars in between.

Space art / Visualisation

11. September 2015

The Space Elevator: It Ain’t Cheap, But…

An elevator into space: it sounds like science fiction. And that’s what it is: authors such as Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein and Kim Stanley Robinson wrote heavy books about it. But what’s science fiction today, is in the newspaper paper tomorrow and in the history books on the day after. And Arthur C. Clarke has been right more often; after all, he also conceived the communications satellite. An appealing concept In recent years, organizations such as NASA, but also companies like Google, started exploring the possibilities of the space elevator. And the concept certainly has some appeal. The traditional way to get… Read More

Van Kregtentunnel in Wierden, with on the walls tiling based on paintings by Fedor van Kregten, seen from the north

Photography / Various

20. July 2015

Cow Tunnel in Wierden Still Free of Graffiti

Two and a half years after the opening of the Van Kregtentunnel I went back to take a look at the project. The underpass, close to the station in Wierden, was still in good shape. Tunnels like this usually get covered with tags, pieces and other graffiti fairly quickly after opening. But in this case there’s no trace of that. Respect It could be that the municipality of Wierden has a very strict cleaning policy regarding this underpass. But it’s more likely that the graffitists have respect for the work of another artist. Master of the Beasts That other artist… Read More

unclear icon for the silence zone in a Dutch train, with a person, a laptop, a book and a headset

Various

13. April 2014

Silence?

Okay, the picture is slightly blurry. However, the depicted icon is also vague for another reason. Because what does it mean? We see a seated person, a laptop, a book and headphones. But it’s not clear how these four relate to each other. On the train in which I was travelling, a discussion arose when someone asked two talking ladies to be silent ‘because this is a silence compartment”, pointing at the icon. I was sure that it was not, because that silence compartment was a few compartments away in the same train, with the words “stilte/silence” clearly written on… Read More