"Hou ist?" is regularly asked in Groningen to friends, acquaintances and family. It means "How are you?". After several months of lockdown and social distancing due to COVID-19, the question is asked more often than ever.
The Groningen Visual Arts Center asked me to come up with an answer to the one and a half meter society for the project 'With appropriate distance'. The location for the solution or artwork was the Noorderplantsoen, the park near the city center of Groningen.
The answer became a meeting place with built-in seating areas 1.5 meters away from eachother. You come to the park to relax, catch up with your friends and leave all COVID-19 circumstances behind you. However, everyone still has to follow the one and a half meter rule. Thanks to the built-in seating areas, you no longer have to think about keeping your distance.
Letters were made by using Europallets (80 x 120 cm) and placing them against each other. Stacking pallets in certain places creates seating areas. From above you can read 'HOU IST', up close there are several statements in Groningen' dialect placed to greet, question or encourage each other.
HOU IST can be used from July 6, 2020 until September 30, 2020.
