POLDERS - Overview 5 Themes / 15 Polders

Five themes
The exhibition charts the history and the future of fifteen polders through five themes: the aesthetic of the rational polder landscape, the enormous urbanist and landscaping problems in the IJsselmeerpolders, polders that have become heavily urbanized, polders that have been returned to nature and polders that are in crisis.

Fifteen polders
The Netherlands has more than three thousand polders. The Dutch lowlands comprise the provinces of Zeeland, Zuid-Holland, Noord-Holland, Flevoland and parts of Utrecht, Friesland and Groningen. There are various sorts of polders including peat polders, land reclaimed through dikes and drained polders. This latter type is the focus of the exhibition because of its greater design issues. The selection of fifteen polders is spread across the most important polder provinces. They are typical for their period and region, and some, such as the Zuidplaspolder, are of great topical interest.

Mastenbroek Polder (1364)
Beemster (1608 - 1612)
Zoetermeerse Meerpolder (1614-1616)
Borsselsepolder (1616)
Watergraafsmeer (1628-1629)
Naardermeer (1629, 1806 - 1809, 1883 - 1886)
Zuidplaspolder (1818 - 1839)
Haarlemmermeer (1840 - 1852)
Prins Alexander Polder (1865-1874)
Horstermeerpolder (1629, 1882)
Wieringermeer (1925 - 1935)
Northeast Polder (1935-1955)
Eastern Flevoland (1955 - 1970)
Southern Flevoland (1968 - 1980)
Lauwersmeer (1969)

Lauwersmeer (New Nature)

Naardermeer (New Nature)

Mastenbroek Polder (Aesthetics)

Northeast Polder (The Big Challenge)

Eastern Flevoland (The Big Challenge)

Southern Flevoland (The Big Challenge)

Wieringermeer (The Big Challenge)

Beemster (Aesthetics)

Borsselepolder (Aesthetics)

Watergraafsmeer (Urbanization)

Haarlemmermeer (Urbanization)

Prins Alexander Polder (Urbanization)

Horstermeerpolder (Watershed)

Zoetermeerse Meerpolder (Watershed)

Zuidplaspolder (Watershed)