TOUCH

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TOUCH
28 November 2021 to 27 February 2022

Draiflessen Collection
Georgstraße 16 | 49497 Mettingen
info@draiflessen.com | www.draiflessen.com

What was until recently a completely everyday, self-evident act of human encounter is suddenly no longer so: the mutual touch, the embrace or the handshake. Dutch artist Daan Roosegaarde (*1979) addresses this moment and the significance of this human connection in his expansive installation developed especially for the Draiflessen Collection.

In the museum's 4,300 m3 exhibition space, Roosegaarde has created TOUCH, an interactive work of art that captivates visitors as they enter, creates a sense of wonder, and invites and inspires them to act without words. The fact that our perception and action are specifically directed towards this special act of connection unravels at the very moment of touch: this is the key to an imposing visual explosion that transports us and our counterpart into a new universe when the artwork’s electronic sensor field senses when two visitors join hands and through this interaction, light is then coded into thousands of star lights.

"Roosegaarde highlights an action that we must never again take for granted. He lets us perform a culturally and personally important act in a controlled way and opens our eyes in the same moment.  Instead of being afraid of the future, he consciously awakens curiosity about the infinite possibilities of the future, skilfully directs our gaze inwards as well as towards our counterpart and thus lets us become part of a universe" (Museum Director Dr Corinna Otto).

The TOUCH installation makes it tangible that even the smallest shared interaction can have a big effect and change the world around us. It makes us feel how important it is to be part of a community, what forces can arise from consciously working together, and opens our eyes to how a shared future can be shaped.

Light is an essential design tool for Daan Roosegaarde. "Light is the symbol for new beginnings. To create a better world, we must first imagine it. In TOUCH we join hands to think about our common future." (Daan Roosegaarde)

TOUCH has been created in collaboration with The Wellbeing Project and Draiflessen Collection and Studio Roosegaarde are honoured and excited that TOUCH will be featured in Bilbao, Vizcaya, as part of The Wellbeing Summit for Social Change in June 2022.

About Studio Roosegaarde
Since 2007, Dutch artist and designer Daan Roosegaarde (* 1979) has been developing projects that combine technology and art as well as art and viewers. He develops new physical and mental spaces that open up a view of an alternative world.

As a social design lab, Roosegaarde and his team combine people and technology in project designs that improve daily life in urban areas and at the same time stimulate the imagination. The studio has won numerous international design awards. Its internationally recognised work includes WATERLICHT (a virtual flood that shows the power of water), SMOG FREE PROJECT (the world's first large-scale outdoor air purifier that turns smog into jewellery), SMART HIGHWAY (roads that recharge during the day and light up at night), SPACE WASTE LAB (visualising and upcycling space debris) and URBAN SUN (cleaning public spaces from the corona virus). https://www.studioroosegaarde.net

About the Draiflessen Collection
The Draiflessen Collection was founded in 2009 on the private initiative of the Brenninkmeijer family of entrepreneurs. With its programme and exhibitions, the art museum approaches themes that move between areas of tension such as tradition and the future, faith and doubt, borders and freedom, reality and fiction, and which are illuminated from artistic and scientific perspectives. Current examples are the trilogy FAITH, LOVE, HOPE (2019/2020), the exhibition EMIL NOLDE - A CRITICAL APPROACH BY MISCHA KUBALL (2020/21) and MADE REALITIES (2021).

About the Wellbeing Project
The Wellbeing Project is a systemic global initiative catalyzing a culture of wellbeing and mental health for all changemakers. The Wellbeing Project is a coalition of several hundred social change organisations ranging from key grassroots networks, to leading foundations like the Ford Foundation and the Skoll Foundation, to higher educational institutions like Georgetown University and the University of Capetown.
The Wellbeing Summit for Social Change is the first event bringing together 1,500 social change, governmental and business leaders from around the world to advance individual and collective wellbeing for those working on the front lines of social change. Topics will range from the neuroscience of wellbeing, to environmental belonging, to intergenerational trauma, and how to encourage healthier organisational cultures. Art is at the heart of the event, with a spectacular program of visual and performing arts presented in partnership with renowned international arts organizations and partners including the Ursula Hauser Collection, the Silkroad Ensemble, and Science Gallery Bengaluru.
TOUCH | © Draiflessen Collection

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Credits:
Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021
© Draiflessen Collection/Daan Roosegaarde, photo: Peter Hübbe

TOUCH

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021

Daan Roosegaarde, TOUCH, 2021