accomodation at sea
A sofa of pure salt to sit on and look out over the Nieuwe Waterweg (the entrance to the Port of Rotterdam), or the sea at Hoek van Holland. In bad weather, you can take shelter from the wind in the middle of the salt bank. In nice summer weather, the bench does not heat up and offers coolness to those who sit on it. Children see it as a fortress and play in it.
The alternation between periods of rain and sunshine, combined with the wind, deforms the bench by dissolving and crystallising the salt. Slowly, the bench transforms into a ruin. Eventually, the salt flows back again, into the sea.
description: Stacked salt blocks (totalling 12,500 kg) initially held together by rope. (4 x 4 x 1 m3)
exhibition: Sitting by the Sea
client: Stichting Promotie Hoek van Holland
sponsor: Akzo-Nobel
2002