{"id":401223,"date":"2026-04-28T08:16:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T08:16:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/401223\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T08:16:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T08:16:11","slug":"drift-museum-exclusive-first-look","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/401223\/","title":{"rendered":"DRIFT Museum Exclusive First Look"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Van Gendt Hallen in Amsterdam, a historic industrial facility where locomotives were previously manufactured, is currently undergoing a major renovation to become the future DRIFT Museum<\/a>. A small group of attendees recently toured the site, which is in the early stages of construction, as part of a rare experience organized through VIP Cardholder Access from Capital One<\/a> and The Cultivist<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Lonneke Gordijn, co-founder of the artist duo DRIFT<\/a>, provided a walkthrough of the facility and explained the rationale behind the project. DRIFT is known for large-scale kinetic works, including drone performances and complex light installations. Gordijn stated that the studio identified a need for specialized infrastructure that traditional museums are often unable to accommodate. She explained that their work requires a specific dialogue with the space it occupies.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur work belongs in a context, and the dialogue between the context and the work is part of the experience of our audience,\u201d Gordijn said. She described the museum as a hybrid between a gallery and a theater, designed to permanently house the technical equipment and mechanical support required to operate their light, air, and movement-based artworks. She noted that the decision to build was born out of necessity rather than ambition, adding, \u201cIt was not a dream to have a museum, it was needed as the next step in our creative process.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Gordijn and co-founder Ralph Nauta established the studio after meeting at the Design Academy Eindhoven in the early 2000s. The studio has since grown into a global operation with a staff of 50. During the tour, it was noted that Nauta was absent, as he was in Los Angeles overseeing the studio\u2019s presentation of Franchise Freedom for the opening of LACMA\u2019s new David Geffen Galleries. When discussing how the duo maintains their creative partnership after 20 years, Gordijn explained that they share a consistent collaborative wavelength. \u201cI have the feeling we share a radio frequency, and we are always in the same frequency,\u201d she said. She added that while they sometimes approach problems from different angles, \u201cWe strive for the same goals, sometimes from complete different angles, but we never have to doubt each other.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

1 of 4<\/p>\n

\"drift<\/p>\n

2 of 4<\/p>\n

\"drift<\/p>\n

3 of 4<\/p>\n

\"drift<\/p>\n

4 of 4<\/p>\n

\"drift<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to study togetherness, we want to study what it is that binds us.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Regarding the role of technology in their practice, Gordijn addressed the studio\u2019s approach to AI. She stated that while the studio may utilize AI as a tool for brainstorming, they do not use it to drive their creative vision. \u201cWe don\u2019t really think that AI should make creative decisions,\u201d she said. She emphasized that DRIFT prioritizes physical, tangible experiences over digital simulation, suggesting that as digital content becomes more prevalent, people will look for more authentic interactions. \u201cAt some point we will be overloaded with all sort of things that we start to crave realness and physical realness,\u201d she noted.\n<\/p>\n

The museum will not follow a traditional chronological exhibition format. Instead, Gordijn stated that the layout will focus on creating environments intended to influence visitor perception and engagement, with the goal of fostering human connection. \u201cWe want to study togetherness, we want to study what it is that binds us,\u201d she said. She noted that her hope is to provide visitors with something often missing from their daily lives: \u201cWhat we really want to give people is time and space.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

The DRIFT Museum is scheduled to open later this year, pending the final delivery and completion of the building. The project marks a significant expansion for the duo, shifting from temporary exhibitions to the establishment of a permanent institution where their work can actually breathe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Van Gendt Hallen in Amsterdam, a historic industrial facility where locomotives were previously manufactured, is currently undergoing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":401224,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,501,156,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-401223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=401223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/401224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=401223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=401223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=401223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}