A new interactive public artwork titled New Dawn has arrived at the NDSM Wharf in Amsterdam North, featuring 108 bright red plastic chairs arranged in a large circle.
Created by Howareyourfeeling.studio, a practice run by Mumbai-based artist couple Doyel Joshi and Neil Ghose Balser, the piece was originally commissioned for the Brighton Festival in collaboration with Indian sitar player Anoushka Shankar.
A traveling footprint on the shipyard
Over the next six weeks, the installation will shift position across nine different spots on the former shipyard, offering visitors changing views of the surrounding industrial landscape and water.
The arrangement relies on the ubiquitous monobloc chair, painted red for the project, which holds specific cultural resonance in South Asia while serving as a simple piece of street furniture in European cities.
The choice of 108 chairs connects to Indian traditions, where the number holds spiritual significance, while the circular formation is designed to evoke the shape of the sun.
Encouraging interaction in public space
Curators from the Stichting NDSM-werf, the foundation that manages the site’s outdoor programming, selected the work to explore how people navigate and share open space in the city.
Passersby are encouraged to sit, chat, and reconfigure the seating, turning regular site visitors into active participants in the artwork.
Local artists and residents living nearby noted that the setup creates an informal gathering point, similar to a public terrace overlooking the IJ waterfront.
Daily setup and seasonal display
A crew of recent art school graduates arranges the chairs every morning using a layout grid, rope, and tape, resetting the installation each day until its final showing on August 23.
The chairs are available for sitting daily between 11:00 AM and 6:00 PM, after which the team clears them from the site.
The artists also plan to work with Anoushka Shankar to record a dedicated soundscape that will eventually accompany future presentations of the installation.
