Rotterdam Rooftop Walk city centre Rotterdam. The walkway above Coolsingel at almost 30 metres high.

Rotterdam Rooftop Days to return

Mar. 22, 2023

The annual Rotterdam Rooftop Days (1 - 4 June) will take place on over 60 different rooftops in the city. And like last year (with the Rotterdam Rooftop Walk), the festival will feature a large project that remains accessible for the full month of June: Bovenop Zuid is an art park on a rooftop over 6 football pitches in size. Artists will paint on walls, objects and the actual rooftop surface, connected by a bright yellow walking path spanning 850 metres. The rooftop in question is that of shopping centre Winkelcentrum Zuidplein, at the heart of the most important public transport hub and commercial area south of the river in Rotterdam.

During the Rotterdam Rooftop Days you can visit the city’s rooftops. High places that usually feature nothing but solar panels and air conditioning units, or that are (most often) not used at all. The festival’s programme is centred around utilising rooftops in creative ways, as the city becomes more crowded and space is in high demand. Designers and artists let visitors experience the different ways in which rooftops can be used to make the city more lively, sustainable and resilient to the effects of climate change. Colourful lunar landscape on top of Zuidplein. Zuidplein is an important public transport hub and commercial centre with one of the largest bus terminals in the Netherlands. In recent years, the surrounding area has been transformed with new construction, renovations and a different layout of the public space. The shopping centre was first opened in 1972 and celebrated its 50th birthday last year, as well as the completion of large-scale renovations. Citizens of Rotterdam and the surrounding area have been coming there for decades to shop and dine, but never before were they welcomed onto the roof. On top of the building lie six football pitches of space over different levels, resembling a lunar landscape adorned with small structures and solar panels. Artists will create an exhibition of art works there, curated by Rotterdam Rooftop Days and inspired by stories from the neighbourhoods around the rooftop. In this way the space on the roof will be utilised as a platform for new perspectives on the area, its inhabitants, its history and its development. Art on rooftops This is not the first edition of Rotterdam Rooftop Days featuring large art works on rooftops. In 2019, the Sleeping Giants by French artist duo Ella & Pitr graced the rooftop of two other prominent buildings in the area. And in 2022, a large work by Leon Keer was made as part of the exhibition on the Rotterdam Rooftop Walk. The artists working on this upcoming project will be announced soon.

Ticket sales for the full festival programme, including Bovenop Zuid, will start on the 1st May at rooftopdays.com. The admission price for the rooftop art park will be €3,50.

Rotterdam Rooftop Days to return

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