300 Illuminated Drones Just Swarmed a Dutch Hospital as Part of a Secret Guerilla Artwork by Studio Drift to Honor Frontline Workers

The artist duo Studio Drift staged a surprise performance in the
skies above a Dutch hospital last night in tribute to
frontline medical workers, and in commemoration of the 75th
anniversary of Dutch Liberation Day, when the country was
freed from German control at the end of World War II.

The dazzling event over the
Erasmus MC hospital in Rotterdam, which was planned in secret so as
not to encourage gatherings of viewers, included the flight of 300 illuminated drones.

“So much hard work was put into
this performance,” Ralph Nauta and Lonneke Gordijn, the two artists
in the collective, which also goes by Drift, told Artnet News in a
statement. “The whole
experience got us extremely nervous, but also
excited. Colleagues,
friends, families—no one could know what we were working on.
Sharing our work is very important to us, but public safety has
been our number one priority during this entire
process.”

The performance, which
included a piano composition by Joep Beving that was played
inside the Rotterdam hospital, was a special edition of
Franchise
Freedom, a work the duo
first presented at Art Basel Miami
Beach in 2017. It was
also staged at Burning Man in
2018, and at the grounds
of NASA last year to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the moon
landing.

In the modified Rotterdam
performance, the drones also came together to form the shape of a
beating heart.

“We wanted to remind the world
that we can only get through this together,” the artists said. “We have seen during our
previous performances that when people see the artwork together, it
unites them. They are all looking at the same thing, and feel part
of a collective experience.”

For the artists, coordinating the flight of 300 drones was also
a metaphor about individuals coming together for group action.

“In the clasp of COVID-19, our
society is also dependent on our individual actions. It’s time we
look towards nature to learn to be a collective,” they said,
referring to the fact that the drones
simulated the flight patterns of
starlings. 

“It was an amazing experience,”
they said of the event. “For two hours we brought together
thousands of people from all around the globe to connect, even when
it’s not physically possible.”

Watch a video of the stunning performance below.

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Hospital as Part of a Secret Guerilla Artwork by Studio Drift to
Honor Frontline Workers appeared first on artnet
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