The cultural center Knokke-Heist in Belgium  - ever since the concert of the Beach Boys in  1987  the "Surfers Paradise" of the North Sea coast -  presented  the exhibition „Surfing – The Cult of Cool“  . On  700 qm it showed the fascination and richness the of surfing culture that has so many actives and passive followers at the Belgian coast.

In 5 thematical scenarios the visitors were brought to the  surfing heritage and future, fashion and boards, heroes and legends as well as present professionals and music, films and photography.
The exhibition presents surfing's iconic "way of life" while focussing on the essential Hawaian "Aloha Spirit" that binds surfers up to our present time.

Totems was commissioned by the cultural center Scharpoord in Knokke-Heist for the concept, design and production including all content and image research. Texts were written by Simone Knaapen. An essential input in stories and spirit came from  „Surfers Paradise“ by Frank van Leenhove.

A surfsimulator and a virtual reality-experience with original photos from Hawaii barrelsurfing alongside a range of events  completed the exhibition.

The traditional surfboard shaper Tom „Pohaku“ Stone from Hawaii came all along and and did some live shaping and told the visitors about surfing heritage, the essence of their living with nature and the soul of surfing. The surfboard constructor „Flow and Soul“ from Zeebrugge presented custom-boards made in Belgium.

Trust your Senses – Awareness Experience is an interactive happening exhibition, designed for the employees of BOSCH Automotive as a worldwide container tour.
Please click the following link for the tour: https://www.bosch-awarenessroom.com/en/home/

The purpose is raising awareness of the staff to improve the quality of production by the 3 senses: feeling, watching and listening.
So defective products and faulty processes ought to be recognised and avoided.
Attention and concentration will be trained actively and passively by games and tasks at the particular exhibits.

Totems created the concept, the design, the architecture inside and was also responsible for the implementation.
It was a really exciting work which requires a lot of time, good intuition and creativity together with a lot of fun, as we tried all games ourselves.
We did it!

Hermitage Amsterdam, The Amsterdam Museum and City Archive Amsterdam presented at the beginning of the new cultural season 2017-2018 a new permanent multimedia experience: Panorama Amsterdam.
 

In one of the most beautiful rooms of the Hermitage with a view on the river Amstel, the visitors are travelling through the centuries by film, animation and sound. Panorama Amsterdam tells the visitor in 8 minutes the spectacular story of the city of Amsterdam. A story of its origin, its growth and flourishing history, with the building of the Hermitage - The Amstelhof from 1683 - as its central point of view. A story about the city of Amsterdam, its inhabitants and visitors, the Artists, the Tsar, Emperors and Kings, and about a palace for the poor that became a palace for the arts. The opening was a fantastic summer event in the courtyard of the Hermitage, with hundreds of visitors and a large scale projection on the facade.
 

Totems developed this breathtaking medial journey together with 'de Nieuwe Collectie' for content and Arjan Klerkx for filmproduction.

Archeological research of the area of West-Vlaanderen has been extremely extensive over the past decade - it now enables an unprecedented detailed mapping of the war in the area.

A war that is still very visible in the landscape, even today. Drone footage shows clearly the outlines of century old bomb craters and trenches in wheat fields. The traces are only inches under the surface in the ground.
The exhibition is the first of its kind, worldwide - and is sure to impress even those who've never had a feel for the theme, through its exciting scenography – and its presentation of breathtaking maps and footage.

In close cooperation with the scientific staff of IFFM and archeological staff of Ghent University.
The exhibition opened 16 February 2018 and will run until August 2018.

The story of the three legendary change makers Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi. The exhibition presented the lives, turning points and meaning of the three charismatic icons of social movement and equality in the 20th century.

The multicultural audience was led through three contrasting scenographies. In the central 'reflection' space, flanked by a sensational 50 m2 mirror, the visitors are challenged to reflect upon their own personal ideas and experiences. 

The Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam, with its direct access from the Dam being the pinnacle of our multicultural and international society - was the ideal location for this theme. The exhibition drew a total of app 60.000 visitors.

This spectacular exhibition ran from September 2017 until 4 February 2018.

The Flanders Fields Museum in Ieper is dedicated to the story of the First World War in the West Flanders front region. It is located in the renovated Cloth Halls, an important symbol of wartime hardship and later recovery.

"War and Trauma" is the second exhibition for the museum made by Totems. The gripping scenography engages the visitors by leading them from the frontline chaos to the evacuation and nursing of the wounded in the field hospitals.

The exhibition opens the WWI centennial memorials in Belgium, which last until July 1st, 2014. For more information please visit www.inflandersfields.be

This exhibition focussed on the actions of the Royal Navy against the Somali piracy. It gave insight into the background of contemporary piracy in the Horn of Africa, the world of the Somali pirates - and the Dutch marine force that fights them.

The exhibition was divided into three parts: The story of the Royal Navy, the story of the Somali pirates and the confrontation between these two parties. In this way the exhibition offered an extremely clear and fascinating picture and experience of the conflict and its actors.

The exhibition ran for many years in the Marine Museum in Den Helder.

An inspiring mix of tradition and innovation to be explored! SKS metaplast GmbH & Co. KG is a manufacturer of high quality pumps and mudguards, a specialist for bike parts ”Made in Germany“, decided to create a communication- and training-centre at their headquarter in Sundern, Germany.  A part of their former production on-site, with around 800 sq.m, was converted to a multifunctional showroom, the Orange World. It became a platform to present their products, a place for internal communication (e.g. meetings and trainings) but also a place to invite guests, especially clients and dealers.

Totems is responsible for the concept, design, project management and the realisation on-site, we created an atmospherically space with different functions. A central spatial form is the ideal place to present products and also the history of the company, the brand SKS. Around that, different distinctive rooms were designed: a lounge for informal meetings, training-room, meeting-room, bike shop and an area where OEM-parts are shown.

The former production hall kept his industrial character with rough concrete walls, old steel piles and concrete flooring. New elements, like mobile textile walls, new synthetic materials, like acrylic displays, white lacquered surfaces are in contrast to the old structure. A very light and exciting place to meet appeared.

 

Thé Tjong- Khing: Van Strip tot Sprookje
Totems has designed an interactive family exhibition for Letterkundigmuseum in the Netherlands. The exhibition is designed especially for children between 3 to 13 years old. The exhibition is a great discovery for children, with colourful exhibits and interactive games to explore the world of children’s book illustrator Thé Tjong-Khing.