Sarah van Sonsbeeck

Sarah van Sonsbeeck (1976) studeerde architectuur aan TU Delft en studeerde aan de Gerrit Rietveld Academie. Haar werk gaat over stilte, toeval en de schoonheid van mislukking. Voor de Open Call ontwierp ze een World Flag.

In 1988 Paul Carroll designed the ‘World Flag’ as a symbol inspiring positive global change while celebrating cultural diversity. His action cannot be seen separate from Black Monday, the infamous market crash on October 19th of 1987. Crisis is extremely disruptive, but in its wake crucial perspective shifts can spring. Art can signal these. In 2001 OMA created the EU barcode, a flag made from all EU flags’ colours.

Will Corona inspire a shift? Sadly, it inspires populist leaders to emphasize populist agendas and close borders. In a crisis openness, togetherness, is needed. I propose researching openness by attempting Carroll’s World Flag anew, ideally shown on Museum Square, an important shared city space. It will be a tribute to Carroll’s and OMA’s flags, using the separate colours in a new design and opening their symbolic borders allowing them to blend and share territories, using natural materials and climatological elements like rain and water.

My grandmother survived Auschwitz and one of her fingernails was missing. As a child I asked her why. ‘Just an accident’, she said. I never believed that. Jewish families with a history of war often do not want to talk about it. Ischa Meijer threw that open, he de-masked the war. I often feel I want to do the same.

Ronit, (c) Iris Duvekot

I know I dress differently, but I like the freedom of choosing what my body looks like just as I like the freedom of being attracted to whomever I chose, man or woman. I won’t be pinned down by what others have to say about that.

Alex, (c) Iris Duvekot

Even though I have lived in Amsterdam for years now, people don’t always see me as Amsterdammer

Yasemin, (c) Iris Duvekot