Seating objects made of building rubble from a demolished bunker
Second setup : ‘The Memory of Maastricht’
On 1 April 2019 Paul Koenen presented 3 round objects made out of the remnants of an atomic-command-bunker in the Maastricht Tapijn-Parc. These objects are, like his earlier ‘memory-pieces’, designed so the rain drains off quickly. The Bunkerseats for the Tapijn Parc were commissioned by the Municipality of Maastricht and Maastricht University, and they embody a piece of Cold War military heritage. The Tapijn-parc has a long history in defending the city of Maastricht. The Parc is situated alongside the medieval citywall and hosted a military base for almost 100 years (1916-2010) A “secret” command bunker was built during the cold war and demolished in 2018. The bunker had a discreet look and (almost) nobody knew about its existence , If you sit on one of the three objects the bunker was situated just opposite of the new bicycle/pedestrian lane 30 meters away.