Half and Half and Satiated

Den Haag 2016 #4: The Hague Model United Nations Conference

Half day conference.  Half day Art.  Exhausted.

All morning was spent moving from committee to committee to observe, photograph and enjoy seeing the kids engaging in the whole 'Model United Nations' experience.  As yesterday, several of them took to the podium in various venues around the World Forum Centre to address an audience of 100+ delegates, peers and then field their questions. (extra)   *Proud*

On Wednesday, the conference breaks at lunchtime and in the afternoon I took all 26 students to the Gemeente museum, literally next door to our hotel.  I took so many photographs it has proved impossible to choose just one.   I love this place. The museum always has ever changing exhibitions that are beautifully, creatively and empathetically curated as well as being the permanent home of the biggest Mondrian and De Stijl collection in the world. The main image I finally chose for my journal is one of the most colourful - taken from the current exhibition about contemporary Dutch Fashion designers.  The colours in this room were amazing, the meditative music playing made the whole observation experience an unforgettable and mesmerising one.  If I had to choose one art work however, it would be Matthew Day Jackson's stunning piece - "The Tomb" 1974.  (also extra).  As we walked in to the room where it is exhibited there was a general out breath of amazement.  Dumbstruck, we walked around, underneath and through the piece before finally able to comment.  Exquisite, stunning, impactful and a whole host of other superlatives that don't do it justice - and neither does the photo - so it is relegated to my 'extra' gallery for today to be little more than an aide memoire.   Honourable mention also goes to the Christie Van Der Haak room exhibition "Fairytales" which had us gasping in wonder and running about from space to space.   So much colour and pattern. (extra - the most colourful selfie I think I have taken).  Down in the basement some of us found an interactive exhibition aimed at younger (than us) children, but we had a lot of fun with it, including disco dancing  in borrowed fashion costume (them, not me! - as seen in the extra).  Finally, of course, I can't quit this topic without mentioning, as I do every year when I come to the Hague,  that I just adore the actual fabric of  this splendid Art Deco building - an art work in itself. (extra)

"The Gemeentemuseum Den Haag is an art museum in The Hague in the Netherlands. The museum, built 1931–1935, was designed by the Dutch architect H.P. Berlage. It is renowned for its large Mondrian collection, the largest in the world." Wikipedia

The weather, of course, was foul. Strong wind and nasty rain.  Oh well, you can't have everything - but today, I kind of felt like I did.

If you are interested to see more: 
Thimun 2016
Christie Van Der Haak Fairytales at the Gemeentemuseum
Matthew Day Jackson the Tomb at the Gemeentemuseum
Gemeentemuseum