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image: Rotterdam Cultural Histories #12
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image: Rotterdam Cultural Histories #12

Rotterdam Cultural Histories #12: Witte de With; What’s in a name?

Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art was recently challenged, through the process of the Cinema Olanda: Platform project, to reconsider the legacies of its name. The question that was posed by the Platform’s programmers during preparations for the project, and later through an open letter addressed to the institution, was ‘What does it mean for a white institution to do “critical work” under the moniker Witte de With?’ This edition of Rotterdam Cultural Histories is devoted to a part of this question. It attempts to lay bare the activities of Witte Corneliszoon de With, the motivation behind street-naming in the nineteenth century, and the naming of the institution 27 years ago. It also aims to provide a space for public feedback on the question as to whether Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art should change its name. until Sun 31 Dec 2017, Art Evenings 6 – 9 pm, website