Diertgens 2024

Highlight Delft and Stichting KITE have joined forces for a special project with hundreds of schoolchildren and students from Delft. This way we can reach beyond the regular visitors of our festival and give a younger generation the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of art & technology.

Sometimes it seems as if the outside world is becoming increasingly complex. Technologies, such as virtual reality or augmented reality, open up almost unlimited possibilities: virtual and physical reality are merging. What is “reality” these days?

Imagine diving into a microscope and entering a completely new world. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek was the first to see this ‘new’ world with his microscopes. He had no words for what he saw, so he called them ‘diertgens’ (little animals).

“It looks like an alien world!” exclaimed a boy from grade 9 after seeing a microscopic water bear. Different schools and young people in cultural centers in Delft have studied Van Leeuwenhoek’s world of diertgens and have designed and animated their own fantasy creatures. Using old-fashioned cutting, pasting, and playing with an overhead projector, the young people expressed their view of the diertgens. And with the Tagtool app on the iPad, they made these creatures come to life on the screen.

Because when you look at the world from very close up, sometimes a new one opens up before you.

The program

The program in which Highlight Delft goes into the schools started at the beginning of November 2023. In the unique educational program the needs of the schools have been considered. Tailor-made! More than 150 young people aged 14 to 22 years old have contributed to this artwork as part of the education program of Highlight Delft.

This unique way of working ensures that the content, methods and techniques are better retained. What all parties have in common is a contribution to a community artwork at Highlight Delft 2024. An interactive work of art that visitors can enter and surround, and even add images to!