cardio_vision
2024 - 2025
KRIMPEN AAN DEN IJSSEL - In 2024 I worked in this municipality on an artistic research with the title cardio_vision. I was invited here by policy advisor Ellen Jacobs (Culture, Language and Events). In dialogue with this surrounding I developed a plan for a "cultural construction site" with the title 'The Performance'. In 2025 I worked on the possible realization of this proposal.
'CARDIO_VISION' - My research focused on the long-cherished wish to realize a "Heart of Krimpen". It has been the ambition since 2006 to give the village centre a 'lively' character. There is a centre vision plan (2022) and this municipality is taking steps to further develop this. Various parties are involved in this issue and the interests vary. The conversations with property owners and shareholders are not accessible. When results are lacking, it works to the disadvantage of this municipality. I asked the question what exactly a "Heart of Krimpen" is or can be? Ultimately, it was my goal to search for new meanings and perspectives.
I spoke with many people in Krimpen aan den IJssel. I would like to thank everyone for sharing their knowledge. I searched for everything that could be of significance for a vibrant "Heart of Krimpen." By examining the local DNA, I tried to understand the current situation. It struck me that there has been, and continues to be, little attention paid to essential historical sites. Consider, for example, the ferry dock, where the ferry from Capelle to Krimpen once sailed. This used to be called the gateway to Krimpen. The Hollandsche IJssel Barrier and the Algera Bridge have a much less rosy reputation in popular opinion today. The Bridge of Sighs never became the beloved gateway to Krimpen. Herein lie opportunities for the cultural "Heart" of Krimpen.
Krimpen now seems torn between village and city in its ambitions. The provincial road N210 literally draws a line through the village between old and new Krimpen. This has a detrimental effect on the perception of the village as a whole. I watched with some surprise how the development of the old Heart of Krimpen (also known as T'Enge) came to a halt when all attention was focused on the new shopping center to be realized in 1960. Today, it is important to examine how decisions from the past relate to what is specific to the culture of Krimpen aan den IJssel. In doing so, it is important to pay more attention to the crescent-shaped origins of the ribbon village along the dike. The potential heart of the village still resides in T'Enge today.
Stories from the past deserve a full retelling. When we talk about the brickyard director's first bicycle, that is an opportunity to also talk about the women and children who often had to work there in deplorable conditions. We must consider the place occupied by the people who make Krimpen what it is today, and who have made it in the past. It is striking that the streets in the village are named solely after monarchs, mayors, and male politicians or artists. Important figures (often women) are missing. We must also mention who is buried in the 3rd and 4th classes of the cemetery outside the dikes. If Krimpen aan den IJssel is a working-class village, why does the statue of the worker stand along the road from the industrial estate and not at the Raadhuisplein?
Certain decisions in the built environment have created scar tissue. A scar itself may not cause any symptoms, but it does reduce blood flow. Figuratively speaking, we must work together to ensure that a new "heart" is also accepted by the "body" and is not rejected. The average life expectancy after a heart transplant is approximately 15 years. It reminds me of the once award-winning shopping center De Crimpenhof and the "heart patient" of today. What does this mean for the decisions to be made? It means, among other things, that we must understand the "body" as a whole before we can perform a successful heart transplant.
The word municipality comes from the medieval commons or common grounds. The shared use of the commons required a form of collective governance. The heart of Krimpen now mainly consists of the semi-public space of De Crimpenhof shopping centre. It is a very undesirable situation that these village streets are closed off with an iron roller blind every day at the end of the afternoon. This causes a heart attack or angina pectoris. The common ground that remains is designed to park cars.
'THE PERFORMANCE' - I sense some hesitation among Krimpen residents when I mention the word municipality. That is why I developed a proposal for a "cultural construction site" with the title:'The Performance'. Culture is a collective design process that continually demands space to learn and change. This title makes the Raadhuisplein a stage and our behaviour there subject for research. 'The Performance' wanted to gain a better understanding about the built "body" and wanted through imagination to think the situation differently.
Also read: my progress reports from Krimpen aan den IJssel on the website of 'Wanted: Talented Municipalities'
This artistic research was part of the innovation lab 'Wanted: Talented Municipalities' with the aim of increasing support among municipalities to work on current challenges together with creative and cultural makers.
Realising a 'cultural construction site' like 'The Performance' depended on people who were willing to work together to make it happen. I found insufficient support in the village to realise this artistic plan in 2025.
Best regards, Edwin Stolk.
cardio_vision in the media: BK Informatie, Platfom 31, Binnenlands Bestuur
cardio_vision follows the concept behin: #theorganisation
cardio_vision is made possible by: Innovationlabs - the Innovation Labs program gives an impulse to new resilience in the cultural and creative sector. The Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie, on behalf of all national cultural funds, and -CLICKNL are implementing the program on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. This project is cofunded by the municipality Krimpen aan den IJssel
Photography: Hristina Tasheva, online footage
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