Sunrise

Cuban artist Inti Hernandez asks, ‘What can I contribute to this life that is still missed?’ Hernandez first came to the Netherlands for a yearlong residency at the Rijksakademie voor Beeldende Kunsten in 2005. His work foils the typical methodologies of industrial design and architecture, creating interventions that force engagement and sharing in public spaces.

His proposal for the work Sunrise imagined an intervention on the dirty glass vault windows over the platforms of Amsterdam Central Station. A stencil of a stylized sunrise would be used to guide a precise cleaning of the windows. The sections are cleaned with lasers, not aggressive solvents; the act of cleaning is thus also the act of creating an artwork. Created using a laser, a clean design tool, Sunrise is ‘performed’ with care and dedication. Sunrise was intended to offer travellers waiting on the platform an uplifting experience and a moment of pause on the often-hectic Dutch commute.