Maurik Stomps

Department: Contextual Design
Website: www.maurikstomps.nl

Bend the Rules, Stretch the Norm

What: Who owns the public space? This project explores that question with small interventions in the streets of Rotterdam.

Why: In a city that is getting more regulated every day, Maurik Stomps playfully stretches the norm by appropriating small pieces of public space. His unrideable bike, welded from two back halves, was tolerated for three weeks, and his sinkhole-proof tiles with an opening for rats only a few days.

How: Stretching it further, he built a house on a bike and left it unattended. When three people started to live there, all seemed fine; Maurik even started to improve his design. But when his guests changed things to their own taste, the authorities stepped in and the system of ‘normalisation’ was set in motion.

“Public space is like a living organism”