Gravity is overrated

Rotterdam Daily Photo: Gravity is overrated
Rotterdam Daily Photo: Gravity is overrated

There is a large wall at the starting point of the Hofbogen, near Hofplein Station. OPPERCLAES, a platform for young contemporary artists, selects an artist a few times a year to show work on this wall. “Gravity is overrated”. A work of art with a message. The designers Hans, Vincent and Guido are members of the artists’ collective High on Type.

Derek Otte on the wall
City poet Derek Otte, poet from Rotterdam, wrote a poem especially for this artwork at this location. The ten lines are scattered throughout the work (translated from Dutch to English).

things keep weighing
weigh things all the time
sit still = a curse
standing still often a blessing

it happens around us
minuses and pluses
everything in between
we give the weight
who lifts his / her darkness
it carries a stronger light

Source: de Hofbogen

Mi have een droom

Rotterdam Daily Photo: Mi have een droom
Rotterdam Daily Photo: Mi have een droom

Inspired on a poem of the Rotterdam poet Ramsey Nasr (link Dutch only). You can’t walk past it without looking and reading the stanza! It is made-up street language. The Rotterdams language as spoken in 2059, a mishmash between the Rotterdam slang, street language and poetry. You can find this mural at Delftseplein.

Missed

This sticker was put on the pole of a traffic light. Its a poem of a sort. I try to translate it to English:

Missed
I miss him. I miss him. I miss him.
I miss him. I miss him. I miss him.
Now I have to wait fifteen minutes for the next one.

As a employee of the public transport in Rotterdam I like the humor of it. Written by Doris Schakenbos who writes many of them, you find more here>>
Picture of the poem taken by Sarah Richter and kindly send to me!