Two Photography and Digital Art Shows in Rotterdam

Rotterdam hosts two concurrent exhibitions exploring European identity and digital art. At the Nederlands Fotomuseum, "Europa. What Else?" (until May 7, 2017) brings together three photographers from different generations: Henri Cartier-Bresson, Otto Snoek, and Nico Bick. Cartier-Bresson's series "The Europeans" (published 1955, shot 1929–1991) documents post-war Europe with a humanistic eye, including moving images from Italy. Snoek (b. 1966, Rotterdam) photographs national celebrations and commemorations across EU countries, revealing a grottoesque national identity amid right-wing turns. Bick (b. 1964, Dutch) captures the interiors of all 28 European parliaments, highlighting each nation's specific identity through architecture and decor. At Kunsthal Rotterdam, "Human/Digital: a symbiotic love affair" (until April 9, 2017) presents 30 works from the Brown Family Collection (based between Glasgow and the Netherlands), featuring 25 international artists using photography, video, websites, installation, and VR. Themes include experimentation, copyright, reproduction, collaboration, and authorship. Notable artists include Cory Arcangel, Rafaël Rozendaal (whose web-based works attract over 60 million visitors), Yu Hoglei (who distorts YouTube tutorials), Tabor Robak (existential video game struggles), Shezad Dawood Kalimpong (VR immersion), Cécile B. Evans (self-plagiarised study), and Jonas Lund (GPS-tracked paintings with nine rules for collectors).