The Story
Public art project; a public project of art.





the start
The 7th museum project started in 1992. Six institutions for the 
preservation of the Dutch national cultural heritage located in 
the center of the placid governmental city, The Hague, broke 
through their isolation and opened their highly monitored, 
historical valued environment for contemporary art. The 
preliminary interest of those six institutions was to improve 
the public relations, a matter of great (political) importance 
in these days even for cultural institutions. These institutions 
are: The Royal Cabinet Mauritshouse, The Picture Gallery of 
William V, Museum Bredius, Historical Museum, The Prison Gate 
Museum, and the Visitors Center of the National Parliament. 
They asked Stroom/hcbk, the local organization for public art, 
for some advise. Themselves they thought of some banners or 
sculptures from door to door.




The site was visited; a text was written: 'Contemporary art and 
the power of the past'. The most accentuated issues were:

First: (public) art isn't a PR-strategy. Improving the public-
relations of the involved institutions should be perceived as 
part of the context. Material for the artists, not their aim. 

Secondly: Against basic rules of publicity strategies, the 
artworks were exhibited, not all together, but over a period of 
time. There was no official opening. Mayor interest was to avoid 
the impression of an 'once in a time' presentation of modern art 
in an historical context. In this preliminary period, we thought 
of a long term collaboration.

Thirdly:  public art should not be identified with the 'physical' 
or outdoor public space. Mostly sponsored by the government 
(public money) these institutions and their collections were part 
of the public field as well. To escape the narrow binds of 
'location' or 'site specificy' of art, a more independent 
perspective on the context was looked for. 

We recognized our viewpoint in what Stephen Prina called a system 
specific approach.




the first movements
On 26 April 1993 a meeting was organized in the decorated Golden 
Room of the Mauritshouse (see picture). Artists and people  from 
the art world presented different kinds of project and possible 
attitudes in the field of public art. They talked about 
(historical) spectacles, advertisement campaigns of Benneton, and 
an new museum for one-visitor-at-the-time, as the ultimate public 
approach. It was moment that the '7th Museum' got its name . A 
point of no return.


In October 1993 Menno Grootveld made a video registration about
'successful' publicity event in this area: 'Poets close to Home' 
(Dichter bij Huis), an literary tour organized by the foundation 
with the same name.  On historical spots poets read their work in 
public. The video-registration was a survey in the field of the 
effects of cultural PR-management. It was a beautiful day; 
everybody had a wonderful time. It was broadcasted by a local 
TV-Channel. 



defining the site; a concept?
One of the mayor intention of the project was to tackle the usual 
public-relation strategy. Normal in the sense why public art 
projects are initiated these day: in the benefit of the context 
in which those projects are organized.  Contrary to the initial 
idea's of the Hofvijver museums - attracting new public groups - 
the 7th Museum was not organized to move the (modern) art public 
from one place to that of the Court pound in The Hague. In so far 
as there was any specific public group in scope, it was the usual 
visitors in that area: tourist, bureaucrats, visitors of the 
regular street market and lovers of the old art in particular. 
There was no official opening. Information about the project was 
low profile and mostly on the spot itself.


An initial concept of the project was conceived. It was a concept 
more  addressed to the attention of the participation institutions 
than as a context for the artists. For the artists a visits to the 
'The Hofvijver' area was of more importance for the 
contextualization of the 7th museum project than this written text. 

In the period of preparation the artist visited the site more 
than once. As privileged tourist they made tours through the area 
and in particular, behind the screen of the facade's of this 
institutions: the paintings in the depots of Mauritshouse museum 
and the offices of the parliament, and some visited the peculiar 
private collection of the house keeper of the Firs Chamber, Van 
Bokhoven, as well. On her visits Renee Green collected the photo' 
for her book and she made the video tape of her visit to a local 
street market and the collection of Van Bokhoven. Andrea Fraser, 
later accompanied with Clegg & Guttmann, had long interviews with 
the official representatives of the collaborated institutes.
Georgina Starr lived for two weeks in residence 'De Lahey', a 
low budget pension in the neighbourhood.



the proposals
It is not without meaning to say that the budget of the 7th Museum 
project was at the start an project without an budget. An very 
extraordinary convenient situation you should say. Besides some 
difficult-to-explain talks, this made it possible the artists 
could proposed the best answer to the question. And most of 
them did, without, what some people expected 'big project 
thinking'.

Before realization the proposals were discussed, extensively. From 
the start we knew that was part of this public art project. The 
project actually started in April with the placing of the election 
billboard of Roy Villoye and ended in November with an meeting 
about the proposal of Andrea Fraser and Clegg & Guttmann. 
During the course of the show some tours and talks by artists 
and others were organized in the  Hofvijver area.



wrinkles in the pound
But there were some problems. They first raised by the proposal of 
Corrie Bezems. She proposed six new plastic bags on with not only 
the logo of the museum was printed, but also an image as a 
reminder for the museum visitor of his visit. The discussion 
exacerbated it self to the design with the image of the favorite 
of the house, the Bull of the painter Potter, imprinted or brand 
with the loge of the sponsor of the planned, big Potter show. 
The foundation Hofvijver museum obstructed this design at most. 
The whole proposal of Corrie Bezems was withdrawn.
Other works too got the impress not executed. Rob Birza painting 
show in the buildings of parliament was too much an picture show 
on a queer spot. Niek Kemps museum-for-one was for Stroom/hcbk 
to much a 'not executable concept'. The proposal of Marijke van 
Warmerdam, to raise an new population of duck divers in the 
Hofvijver was obstructed by the bad quality of the Hofvijver 
water. It became clear that is was a vijver of death.
But the most problems were caused by the works of Aernout Mik 
and Andrea Fraser. In the eyes of the chairman of the foundation 
the cabin of Aernout Mik was only an ordinary 'shitbox' and as 
such of no meaning on this area. The noise ended in a columns 
of a national paper (see Rumoer in Volkskrant). This work was
realized  only under responsibility of Stroom/hcbk.


the model as an end
Invited as one of the first artist Andrea Fraser, later on her 
invitation accompanied by Michel Glegg and Martin Guttmann, 
formulated the most comprehensive answer to the question we 
put to the artist: An open air museum, for artworks out of the 
collections of the participating museums. First she had analyze 
the context with a special attention towards all the institutes 
involved. The concept draw a clear and unmistakable reaction 
from the second man of the Mauritshouse, Van Koetsveld: It is 
in the heart of the matter. But in the course of time the 
raised problems were insuperable. In particular not negotiable 
was the loan of the art object of the collection - even after 
consulting the most adequate (national) experts in the field 
of conservation, security and museum science. And more: they 
were enthusiastic about this (experimental) model. All mayor 
problems, even the financial, were solved. But a final meeting 
about this proposal showed: the last stroke came from 
Stroom/hcbk as the primary commissioner. In the light of the 
financial costs and the negative reaction of the institutional 
partners, was it not opportune to continue this work that 
challenged a lot of the rules and values around the 
conservation of the cultural heritage, which is an mayor 
cultural and political issue in these days.
So ended this challenge to present works of art under the 
most low profile circumstances in a challenging model. 
(for more about this 'real' 7th Museum see: Andrea Fraser and 
Clegg & Guttmann). Alas! This museum-without-walls 
will be for ever a imaginative model.


Although these problems and the late start, the project had 
in the course of time a good press. And for some interesting
to know, some works are part of real collections of even so 
real museums or galleries.

the end as a start

The 7th Museum continued in the beginning of 1996 with a web site.