FLUSH #5: Gates of Secretion
The Dutch call it “het privaat”, the English “privy”. The toilet in particular (the bathroom has a slightly broader meaning) is a space where you are mostly on your own, in full privacy. But not with a smartphone. The internet invades that sacred space at any given moment. Even if you think you’re alone, you are not.
Klaas Koetje transforms the toilet group of W139 into the ultimate private sphere. FLUSH #5 encourages the visitor—whether they are there for a sanitary stop, to withdraw from the crowd for a moment or for any other reason—to reconnect with the private self and reflect on the intrusion of technology in aspects of life as banal as taking a piss.
Klaas Koetje is a self-taught multimedia artist based in Groningen and a certified legend. We are honored that he agreed to be a part of FLUSH.
FLUSH: a sudden rush of intense emotion is a flourishing collaboration between Espacio Estamos Bien and W139, located in the toilets of W139. FLUSH operates as a flexible form of organizing and creating, enabling various types of collaboration. FLUSH aims to foster inter-local relationships, viewing Amsterdam as a hub for facilitating diverse interactions and building connections that bridge distances. Joyful, friendly and decentralized connections extend beyond the Amsterdam art scene.
Text by Mauro Benavidez
Production by Julia Nowicka and Clara Rojas
Design by Josefina Contin
