Op de Kaart

‘Op De Kaart’ at the National Archives in The Hague marks the record keeper’s first ever exhibition dedicated solely to the history and art of map making.

With a collection of 300,000 maps and some 400 atlases and books, the Archives houses the largest collections of maps in the Netherlands. Guiding visitors through an interactive journey, the exhibition offers a unique window into the maps of the past and their continued importance to us in the present.

Zooming in on three central themes: On The Road (Op Weg), Maps and Colonialism (Kaarten en Kolonialisme), and A Makeable Netherlands (Maakbaar Nederland), the exhibition showcases the unique personal, professional and historical perspectives that inform our understanding of maps.

As visitors make their way through the exhibition, which is itself a kind of map, they’re encouraged to interact with what they encounter. ‘Peepholes’ provide alternative ways of seeing while interview ‘terminals’ give real life insights into the role maps play for different people around the world today. 

Designed as a continuous mapping process of the space, visitors receive upon entering a travel journal that invites them to collect their thoughts on the exhibition topics. In the center of the exhibition, designed as an art piece, is a large-scale interactive cube. Visitors travel journals can be scanned and become contributions to a collaborative map about the exhibition itself. This ever changing and growing installation reflects the topics of the exhibition through the eyes of visitors and strengthens the message of what a map can be once more.

Client / National Archives
Status / Temporary
Size / 500 m2
Year / 2023
Location / Den Hague (Netherlands)

Production / Heijmerink Wagemakers
AV / Shosho, YIPP
Photo / Alessandro Reginato

Our role / Art direction, Exhibition design, Graphic design, Campaign
Team / Stefan Fahrngruber, Matteo Renna