Elated City
the street the theatre, the court city the stage

photography, text, design
Guus Rijven

Freely accessible events and festivities are the guiding principle, experiences of residents are the starting point for this book. It is a piece for two protagonists, the participant and the spectator. The first one participates while the other looks at the show from a distance. Their gaze is conflicting and they each use different glasses, a digital versus analogue camera. The performance moves right through neighbourhoods, vicinities, districts and population layers.
 
All photos are taken in The Hague. The court city is an exemplary model for this urban spectacle from the first decade of this century.

In the city's theatre, the resident moves to and from his home. Through streets, across squares, along facades. He lives on the rhythm of arrangements, of encounters and confrontations. There is a lot of distraction, there are many scenes. He sometimes looks up at buildings or visits festivals, affects people. Something always happens. Especially a lot of entertainment, conceived and directed. He can go there. And then what? He goes along with it or he just watches it. As a participant he immerses himself, zooms in and becomes a part. As a spectator he zooms out, keeps an overview and set eyes on a scene. Sometimes an event passes accidentally. He does not want to be part of that. At that moment the resident prefers to look away and forget.  
 
Apart from these three positions - participant, spectator and victim - this photographer-resident blows a tune. As a commentator he writes the distance to the scenes towards himself. All these characters come together in this book. Just like in a city actually.

30 x 21 cm
hardcover, paperbound
260 pages
ISBN 978.90.828194.0.3
language: Dutch only

€ 40,- incl. shipping (Holland)

ORDER
mail to guus.rijven(at)gmail.com
mention: Elated City and your personal details (name, address)
pay on NL82INGB0002376305 attn AJM Rijven
mention: Elated City etc

* When the edition of this publication is sold out, a new printrun will follow.
Then your copy can take a while. Do not be alarmed, Elated City will come to you for sure.