Rotterdam Collective

Hells yeah!

Howdy,

Tom, Richard, y’all, I think the initiative is something that can work. I’m in. I like the idea of different disciplines and experiences coming together to explore and create new possibilities, either artictic, idealistic and even scientific. From the outside a kubus looks like, well, a kubus, but it also represents the framework in which ideas and projects can grow (out-of-their-boxes).

It starts with connecting the right people within the right environment. A place that is both organized (green), flexible (blue) and real (white i guess). So what about a construction with a hive-like exterior with transparant working places that suit the specific needs of the people working there and in its center a open space where thoughts and creativity can run freely and where ‘common’ projects are created and developed for all to see and work on. I don’t know of a place in R’dam that fits this description, but others may…

Different kinds of people mean different kinds of life/work styles with some of us ‘on the move’ most of the time (or no time at all) and others living.working.breathing in the same space-time continuum indefinitely, and others again living abroad and willing to contribute virtually via the web. So a kubus organization has to have some sort of (real and virtual) structure not only for accommodation purposes but also for administrative, financial and even marketing purposes.

Another thing I’d like to propose/discuss is establishing some sort of trust fund (maintained by the kubus foundation or holding) in which revenue from the ‘common projects’ is transferred and can be used to further develop kubus. It may for example also provide people with the financial tools to help develop themselves and their work/services. A small percentage of this revenue may then be wired back into the fund. Even ping-pong tables need to be replaced sometime.

Anyway these are some of my thoughts. I wil leave you guys and galls with a snapshot of the supreme kubus: link. 

Best, Martijn

On the left side we see a traditional company structure.
On the right the way of the kubus is illustrated.

One can clearly see that the instalment of a pingpong table changes things quite dramatically.
The question remains though, will it be blue or will it be green?
I tend to lean towards the blue ones.

Discuss!

Richard Boeser

While we’re waiting for the slomos to post up their responses (there’s a fair share coming still), why don’t you all try to describe your ideal work place. Please do not constrain yourself to whatever we have put in the letter, just spew your mind about what you feel would be the utopia of spending the day like working, making a little money perhaps, and doing the things you are interested in.

Just reply as a comment on this post.

PS, sorry that the comments were withheld for moderation. I turned that feature off now. you should be able to comment at heart’s desire, and please, by all means, do so.

Hi Tom, Richard, and y’all,  Putting my footprint here in this blog feels like coming home and like the beginning of a new journey at the same time. The writings on the wall here are dripping with enthusiasm and inspiration, and I’m very happy to put in my part. It’s very nice to find some familiar names here and I’m anxious to meet the rest.

Working in the music and audio field as composer and engineer has been an interesting endeavor sofar. I’m doing alright, but it has been quite solo sofar. I would really enjoy being part of a bigger organization, and still be able to pursue my own goals. Currently I own a studio, but the ping pong room is suffering from low occupation, so sharing one will be much more fun. I’d really enjoy the company.

For the cube I’d like to contribute music and audio for promofilms and artprojects and whatever else is needed. Also I know how to operate a vacuumcleaner pretty well, and I even was a chemical engineer once (until the factory exploded.)

I look forward to being part of this crossinspirational blender.

Greets, Jay

Tom and I have been (in some occasions even jointly) living in creative yet social environments for quite some time now. One might even state that we are little experts on the subject. 

Yes, always working hard and  building up the latest promising project, we also ceased the opportunity to watch strange Asian and Russian cinema, listen to music about all trees in the forest and eating miles of cotton-ball-cheese from a jar. It was quite the life.

Now, ladies and gentleman, having traveled forth and back from the likes of USA, Rijswijk, Panama, Delft, Vienna, Laren and London, we know (in some occasions even jointly) that the Body Mass Index of creativity could not be more decadently established than Rotterdam – main port of Europe and city of Bokito.

And lord knows that I have still failed to mention the rise and levitation of Richard. Not many men of his kind are born around these territories, enabling unperturbed mothers to let their daughters go out and play. Soothing for some, frustrating for others, since his ingenious presence could fill up all our rooms and create for a new golden age of intellectual prosperity.

In other words, let the finest of the finest join hands and CREATE. Like they say in France: ‘Arbeit macht frei‘, and I couldn’t agree more with those friendly breadstick-eaters. I have been fiddling around in the fields of digital filmmaking and my small (not medium) enterprise is celebrating its tenth birthday this year. Would it be less than awe-inspiring if I could provide for some of my modest sauce, and be able to work together with the finest craftsmen. I have no other option than to say YES and pre-order piles of breadsticks and cotton-ball-cheese.

Count me in!

Remy

Dear Richard and Tom,

about a year ago Tom told me about this idea in a restaurant where the food and service was quite forgettable. Tom’s idea, however, was quite memorable. It was the first thing that popped into my mind when this summer I heard about Urban Resort Projects. A friend of mine, Doreen Westphal, who is the creator and owner of Krejci, took office in ‘het Volkskrantgebouw‘ in Amsterdam, where URP also has the ambition to create an environment where different disciplines meet and inspire each other. I have been there briefly and it seemed like a very social place to work.

In my understanding you want to go a step further with this project by wanting more than just creating office space for small inspiring businesses. You want to actually unify living and working by creating a social living space where it will be fun to work at. I think the idea is beautiful. I have to say the idea does raise a lot of practical questions, but it seems they are quite irrelevant in this stage of your project. Currently, it is about concept and vision and I like it. Lots.

The way I’m thinking about things now, I’d like to get started as a computergame-designer for an existing company, before I start thinking about my own small business. However, starting my own business is what I intend to eventually do. And I think that, might I ever get that far, I’d be very happy a project like Kubus exists. I have many interests and I’d want nothing more than to work and live in an environment which inspires me. Art is about many things and this project could offer them. You can put me on that list!

In high expectation of what may come,

Tijn.

Het lot tarten door het met stomheid te slaan.

Meneertjes.

Since secret meetings with Ilona in Utrecht, and whisperings in the Kanalweg over buttered scones and tea, I was witness this remarkable idea taking shape. The productive and creative talents of Tom and Ri-chard have been a remarkable thing to behold over the years, and combined … well to say the least I am very excited.

As you both know I have less control over my geographical flex-abilité these days, however I will endeavour to be as involved as exertion permits.

Whether via a streaming webcam on my cardigan, or a gps beacon in mijn broek, I would like to make my presence felt.

Tot gauw (maar noit ‘gauw genoug…).

j.

Den Haag, 18/11/2007

Good Tom,

And Richard, with whom I yet have the pleasure to meet,

Tuesday evening I met, upon my arrival from the family printingfirm, your letter on my mat. It read no date so I could only hope to have found it in time. (I have recently put a NO-NO sticker on my door to keep out all the advertisement, for important mail had a tendency of getting lost between it. All the same I could not assure myself wether I had found the letter on the date it was delivered. Hence the tension that I feel concerning the timing of my respons, noting the assumption made in the last paragraph of the letter, and thereupon the start of the letter, where there’s a metaphore of a chicken in winter time; the season that seems to already have started).

I shall begin my reaction with a sketch of my behaviour, alone in my room, directly after reading your letter.

What I did was kneel down on my carpet and cry soundless bursts of joy. I danced motionless, with an utmost strain on all the muscles in my body, and tears welling in eyes that shot through the walls, chasing the multitude of happy omens they could see play before them.

This episode continued itself in waves, until a point of exhaustion that made me grab the bottles of Gin and Tonic I had stored in icy cold.

I then called upon a higher force to grant me back my cool, thus enabling me to carefully cut three razor-thin slices of a lime I had kept especially for this combination of fluids. At my desk this, together with some tabacco, brought me to a start of calmth. I advanced into poetry:

Realer than the bicep-boosted fist shouting from the elbow;
Than a chant too real to let it’s cheer to the ear or the pumping roar for ignition
Without reluctance and without fear ’cause it seems to get realer than that.

Realer than a friend would grabble pieces off, when a witness of the fit,
For it’s no more like a puzzle when realer than this.
That if now the assassin had show, rather words than rage be found.
That he would turn his strike ’round into the heart of his conviction.

Or realer even than choices spent on a vigorous reliance in poisons
And all those familiar songs; And the bore to withhold the new ones from the self-induced lore
When through the hoops of aging down, it just might get something realer

And so forth, you get the impression. I emptied those bottles half way down and awoke without a trace of hangover, feeling revived.

**part missing**

So with all hopes up I beg thee, do let the good city of Rotterdam know I am most willing to lend my hand for the greater benefit of their culture and cultures beyond alike.

Many thanks,
In ready awaiting,
All yours,

Olivier Cornelissen

Tom and Richard,
I remember getting very excited about this idea when I first talked to Tom about it about 4 months ago. As someone who works in a creative field, the type of set up discussed in your proposal sounds amazing! The more walks of life and people I can pull from, feed off of, or get inspired by, the better my work will be. In additional, having a more free form work environment allows me to work in a manner or time that produces the best concepts. It helps too, that bean bags, foosball, and ping pong tables were mentioned since they are a staple of any advertising agency.

This project matches so well with my personal ambitions. I hope to freelance full time, so that I can work on many different clients for many different agencies. However, it will take a lot of work to get my name respected and common enough to make freelance a stable living. I suppose my only concerns with the project are the practical ones. At this stage in my career it would be very difficult for me to move my freelance work to Rotterdam, with most of my connections in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York. In the future however, I may be enough of a self sufficient entity to work with businesses distant from Rotterdam or with agencies near and around Rotterdam and the Netherlands. As my career begins to progress, I hope this opportunity because a very possible reality as it would be an amazing project to be a part of. In short, count me in.

Matthew Talbot

For the rest & English translation click below…

(more…)

hoi

Dear Tom (and the mysterious Richard),

I just got your letter in the mail, and i have to say that it sounds
really exciting!!! (exciting enough to overuse punctuation even). i
guess that i must have initially misunderstood the overall mission, and
thought that it was more specifically based around architecture. i now
understand this cooperative as being much more interdisciplinary and
given the nature of the architecture that i would like to do in the
future, it is crutial that this type of collaborative approach is used.
if sustainability in architecture is to make a significant difference
it has have interactive participation across many fields from the
conception of a project on. this however includes engineers and
science based people as well as artists/architects/designers.

in this vain, when i listed my competencies i was looking too narrowly
at architecture. as my academic background is in fine art, i have a
lot of experience in painting and printmaking. i think that
printmaking in particular has potential in this co-op in terms of
producing our owm publications/propaganda. hosting community classes
or workshops could also help suplement us financially.

i look forward to hearing more, and i will continue to think about the
organization of all of this. i applaude your efforts.

from across the tray,
lydia

Glad you made it out here.

Please put your response in one of these things. I’m sure you can figure out how, but if you have questions you know how to reach us.
About 25% of the possible group does not speak Dutch.

Let’s roll!

( edit: oh that sounds pretty bad doesn’t it?)

First!