Willem
de Ridder >Willem
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Willem de Ridder
gouache, 41 x 63,5 cm
landschap
With photographer Sanne Sannes he worked on a
WITCH IDENTIFICATION PROJECT.
Together with Wim T. Schippers he created a historic
television documentary that for the first time introduced Pop Art, New
Realisme, Fluxus, Zero, AFSRINMOR and PK's to The Netherlands.
His PK's where exhibited in the Museum of Modern
Art in The Hague. In his view the 'museum' was a left over from the court
system and 'art' an excuse to surpress a natural creativity in everybody.
During the official opening of his PK exhibition he announced officiallly
that he would stop using art as a medium or even using the word 'art' for
any of his upcoming activities.
Together with Wim van der Linden he introduced
SAD MOVIES, which were shown in several film festivals in Europe.
He was co-founder of HITWEEK, a reader
written newspaper for the baby boom generation. This national paper became
a youth movement. A new generation of journalists, illustrators, comic
strip artists, radio makers, critics and politicians started their careers
in that publication.
He got a state prize for his ground breaking
design and lay out. He introduced one of the first disco's in the country
(DOUBLE WOW), an experimental ballet group (ART IS POWER),
a new intermedia show (HONK HONK IT'S THE BONK) and was co-founder
of intermedia clubs PARADISO and FANTASIO.
Although he continued his specific research into
the transformation of perception that started in his 'art' period, he refused
to use that word anymore and avoided museums at all costs.
PARADISO and FANTASIO which he 'artistically'
directed inspired 150 similar clubs all over the country. FANTASIO became
a unique international non-stop Fluxus Festival generated by the audience
that came from all over the world. So many people visited, that the formula
had to be changed to attract a smaller crowd. He designed plans to change
the club into an 'Academy for the New Sexuality', which created too much
confusion in the beginning of the 60's. Together with the co-founders Fantasio
became the country's first New Age Centre KOSMOS instead.
Together with William Levy, Jim Haynes, Germain
Greer and Heathcote Williams he started to work on SUCK (The First
European Sex Paper). The paper became a cult item from New York to Tokyo,
which led to the very first Erotic Film Festival in the world: THE WET
DREAM FILM FESTIVAL.
He started an esoteric organisation HOLLANDIA
INTERNATIONAL, changed HITWEEK into ALOHA and decided that the
era of the printing press was over and moved to Hollywood.
In the mansion of Al Jolson (the moviestar in
the very first talkie) he started RADIO CADILLAC, a series of radio
shows for Dutch National Radio.
He studied Chinese Medicine, Shiatsu, Zen Macrobiotics
and Taoism.
He invented and experimented with AUDIO DIRECTED
PERSONAL THEATRE. Test-persons walked with headphones and sizable 'portable'
cassette recorders through Hollywood following his directions and
instructions.
He produced America' s First Reader Written Magazine
FINGER. The contributions of the readers were all about their sexuality
and became so outrageous, that he started GOD, the ultimate sex
magazine. The
first issue was sold out in three hours and had
such an impact, that after three issues death threats were made by the
Manson Family, who sent an audio tape to all local TV stations, stating
that the maker of this magazine would be killed by them. The Federal Police
got involved and De Ridder decided to continue
publication from Europa. He moved with his partner
Prince Maximilian Lobckowicz di Filiangieri and his family to Italy. From
there they published two magazines HATE and LOVE for America.
With William Levy he produced the magazine FANATIC
(special Low Mindedness Issue).
He introduced Radio Directed Theatre for Dutch
National Radio. ESCAPADE and the GREAT OTO DERBY (GOD) brought
30.000 listeners on the road in the middle of the night (following his
instructions).
He produced a series of horror radio plays (DEADLY
FEAR THERAPY) which became quite successful and controversial.
The first SOUND MAGAZINE in which storytelling
transformed images was introduced and sold out in one night.
He started telling stories for children on radio
with Elsa Del Puerto and Peter Pontiac about PRINCE WILHELMUS.
When he produced a special magazine about the
diaries of America's famous pornostar Annie Sprinkle in
Rhodes Island, he got arrested for producing
pornography and chained to Annie Sprinkle. They fell in love and started
living together in Italy to work on new forms of radio and the art of transforming
energy.
From his villa in Italy he produced a television
show for the Netherlands announcing his return to 'art'.
He started a weekly radio concert in which each
listener could send taped sounds (THE RADIOLA SALON) and they got
guaranteed air time.
Everybody who recorded sounds was a composer
and the listeners heard De Ridder open the mail right on the air, prohibiting
all censorship and taste. The Radiola Salon became so popular that he organized
concerts all over the country where everybody could bring a cassette that
would be guaranteed part
of the concert if it had the accompaniment of
a visual act with it.
As soon as the Walkman was invented De Ridder
introduced his first Audio Directed Theatre Event (THE WALK) starting
from Gallery De Appel in Amsterdam (a journey of three days if you followed
the instructions on a cassette).
He started a radio station in San Felice Circeo
(Italy) with Prince Maximillian, that every week presented the MICKEY
AND CAVALIERI Show in which the local population improvised radio plays.
A PAPER THEATRE opened its doors at the
local piazza of San Felice Circeo.
The RADIO ART FOUNDATION was founded.
The SONOR THEATRUM in which the audience
was lying down on beds in the dark, surrounded by sound, was introduced
in the Arnhem Municipal Theatre.
De Ridder became guest of honor of the Holland
Festival.
Alternative lip sync soundtrack was transmitted
on radio in SOAP TRANSFORMATION to accompany a soap opera on television,
transforming the plot completely.
Walkman Directed Theatre Events were installed
in Vienna, Berlin, San Francisco and Munich.
He presented PORTABLE VAUDEVILLE in the
Royal Theatre in Amsterdam with Veronica Vera, Honeysuckle Divine and Betty
Pearl.
Introduced RADIO ART with shows such as
BLIND RADIO which brought many blindfolded people on the streets.
He filled several theatres with audiences who
brought their portable transistor radio's, listening to a theatre piece
in which they were the main stars.
His WALK-O-RAMA fun fair attraction with
walkman aided adventures travelled fairgrounds in Europe.
VIRTUAL REALITY IN THE DARK was introduced
through radio for three simultaneous locations in the Netherlands, later
it featured in Austria at Ars Electronica in Linz.
ONE MINUTE PUBLIC RADIO (radio out of
control) created avalanches of curses on the air.
WIRELESS DATE was a radio theatre in which
the listeners visited their neighbours with a portable radio as a talkative
master of ceremonies.
He introduced the CASSETTE SAFARI in which
car drivers followed the instructions and stories from a cassette, which
transformed the entire landscape.
De Ridder produced the ALL CHEMIX RADIO SERIES
which was transmitted by many college stations in America, Canada and Australia.
With Han Reiziger and Hans Claessen he presented
MUSIC SPEAK (storytelling as a concert).
He introduced the WALKMAN THEATRE (instant
plays without any rehearsal) which were performed in Germany, Danmark,
Sweden, America, Japan, Korea, Italy and The Netherlands.
He experimented with MAG GUIDING CASSETTES
which made old magazines new again.
He created RITUALS on cassettes, a guide
for personal private performances without any preparation.
For one year he presented the NATIONAL RADIO
DRAMA ACADEMY on AVRO Radio in which every listener could take part
in a radio play.
His WALKMAN SCORES made it possible for
symphony orchestra's to present a concert without rehearsal.
He installed MUSEUM TOURS on cassette
in most of the major Dutch Museums which had nothing to do with the artworks
there.
The Museum of Modern Art in Groningen presented
his RETROSPECTIVE EXHIBITION although he still refused to create
any art objects to be exhibited.
With Cora Emens, Hessel and Nicole Veldman he
was a musician in FNTC.
The BEVERLY HILLS MOTOR TOUR was installed.
His EXPLANATIONIST WORKS explained everything.
He started a weekly radio show for Amsterdam
in which his CRIMINAL RECORD SHOWS made many listeners confess their
crimes.
De Ridder became MASTER STORY TELLER,
telling ancient tales in many sold out theatres, some of them lasting more
than six hours.
He presented the SPRINKLE SALON on New
York Cable, an experimental TV-show in which the cameraman was handicapped.
POST ART ART, and SOUND SUCK were some soundmagazines that
were produced with her.
He directed Annie Sprinkle's one-woman-show POST
PORN MODERNISM and was the art director of her book.
He tried out THE ATOM CLUB with a walk-in
program.
Together with Andrew McKenzie he presented the
SPIRAL INFORMATION SERVICE and NYX GLOBAL.
He presented his story SNUFF on CD in
Europe and America.
His European Mail Order Warehouse has become
a major artwork (and the flagship of FLUXUS) touring through all the great
museums of the world.
He has a weekly talkshow on Amsterdam Television.
He publishes a national (oral) newspaper that
is called WILLEM DE RIDDER (nobody writes in that paper, but only
tells stories that are transcribed).
He co-founded the NEW ANCIENT SEX ACADEMY,
a study centre for the management of life energy.
The European Community commissioned him to develop
a new type of permanent cultural tourism: THE
SAGA SAFARI (the voice directs you to
forgotten roads where the ancient stories come alive).
The GREAT FLUX MOTOR TOUR is being prepared,
which will depart from the museums of Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and the
MOCA in Los Angeles.
The WDRO was his telephone radio station
which is part of a regular publication in which artwork and
photographs are transformed by a soundtrack.
The change of our perception will also be the
focus of an english language publication with soundtrack on internet.
He helped to start a nationwide TALKRADIO
station in The Netherlands, bringing back unconditional support for every
listener.
He recreated Queen MARGRETHE'S DRESS in
Roskilde Danmark by using two hundred 1000 kroner bills sown together and
walked with hundreds of followers in one straight line behind him through
that city. Not through the streets but straight through houses, gardens,
basements, banks, offices, slaughterhouses, graveyards, over walls, through
holes, and town hall.
He recorded INTERACTIVE RADIO ADVENTURES
for the province Fryslân and the city Assen.
Together with his father he fabricated a completely
MECHANIC PAPER THEATRE, which features currently his play GOD IS
BACK in two acts.
For many years he presented a weekly 2 hour TALKSHOW
on Amsterdam Radio 100 and his HDTV SHOWS on Amsterdam Television.
Now he has five live shows per week on Talkradio.
500 cars took part in the first NEURORIT on that station. More night
rides will follow.
Together with Peter J Muller he started a national
TALK RADIO PAPER which included the fifth issue of the Willem de
Ridder Paper, a publication with a soundtrack. Comic Strips, articles,
interviews, photographs, drawings and mysterious images all mention a telephone
number. As soon as you dial the number, the comic strip has a soundtrack,
the person who was interviewed can be heard, photographs change in front
of your eyes and drawings come alive.
For the first time in his life he exhibited his
OLD HAT TRICKS, early paintings and drawings, in Gallery Spirit
in Amsterdam. Visitors got a walkman with instructions to visit the Stedelijk
Museum around the corner where they could see his ILLEGAL EXHIBITION.
Since 1990 he gives workshops and seminars on
HOW LIFE WORKS, setting up support groups all over Europe.
More and more companies and industries invite
him for management advice and motivational speeches.
Although some art historians wrote their thesis
on Willem de Ridder, many of his activities are anonymous or misleading.
Besides his Old Hat Tricks he still refrains from creating art objects.
The activities above are just the tip of an iceberg.
For more information about his current activities,
please phone NYX GLOBAL (ask for CLARY) +31-35-6950 787, +31-20-6792 620
or fax +31-35-695 1597 or E-mail wdridder@xs4all.nl.
