Jeff Wall Lost Luggage Depot (2001)

In 1996, Canadian artist Jeff Wall was commissioned by the municipality of Rotterdam to create a sculpture that would commemorate 50 years of reconstruction and 650 years of city rights. The national government financed the monument as a gift to the city of Rotterdam. The location of the sculpture is a reference to the history of the Wilhelminapier, where for decades emigrants boarded passenger ships of the Holland America Line (HAL). The monument stands on the square in front of the old HAL office on the Kop van Zuid, where Hotel New York is now located. Lost Luggage Depot, a storage place for lost objects, consists of an octagonal three-level scaffolding. Everything is made of cast iron and the total weight is approximately 65.000 kg. Suitcases and bags are cast in the scaffolding, which is illuminated by a light pole that is part of the design of the artwork. The scaffolding itself is also a cast. The items in the scaffolding come from different eras. For example, you will find a kit bag from a hundred years ago, but also a computer bag from a more recent past, a portable CD player and an abandoned cuddly toy. Everything is painted in a matt, rust-brown colour to create a formal coherence in the image. Although the casts literally come from an existing reality, the image shows a historical disruption. The monument refers to emigration and the desire for a new future. It shows how people have severed their ties with their native soil. Lost Luggage Depot is a reminder of those who have left, but also for those who have arrived. Lost Luggage Depot has a special place as a sculpture in the oeuvre of the internationally renowned artist Jeff Wall, who is seen as the founder of conceptual photography. Wall once described the image as a 'material trace, just like a photo is, a trace that refers to what once was'. On 3 November 2001, the image was unveiled by then Prime Minister Wim Kok and then Mayor Ivo Opstelten. For more information: Sculpture International Rotterdam