Radio Kootwijk
About the work
This oil painting is the result of a visit of Bert with good friends from Kootwijk in The Netherlands to 'Radio Kootwijk' in 2018. In the painting Bert's great grandmother is visible feeding her chickens. Chickens also can be found around the house of Bert's friends in Kootwijk.
Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its then colony of Dutch East Indies. A part of Bert's family has used the connection through Radio Kootwijk between the Netherlands and the former Dutch Indies.
The main building of the former transmitter park, designed by Dutch architect Julius Maria Luthmann and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphynx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mindhunters in 2004. On the painting the central hall with the special rafters and tiled floor are visible.
