Overslag

Palimpsest of borders

A space between clay and sand grounds.

A space between high and low countries.

A space where salt passed into sweet water.

A space between the Republic and the Austrian Netherlands.

A space between inside and outside the polder.

A space between neutral and trapped in no man's land.

A space that was guarded during the Cold War by the Dutch Air observation system.

A space between the Netherlands and Belgium.

Overslag is in his origin already inextricably linked to borders. The village even lends its origin to it. It’s a dammed river were this village is made. Because of the dammed river the goods that they transported from Terneuzen to Gent needed to be transloaded. Overslag is located on the border between high and low water, the border between sweet and salt water and the border that the land defended against the sea.

After the Sassevaart was finished in 1547 the route from Terneuzen to Overslag become less and less popular. By this the economic of Overslag slowly disappeared. A defence system was coming up in the form of dikes. The dikes of the Overslagpolder also crossed through Overslag. These were part of the Canisvliet and Moerspuipolders in the Netherlands.

The definitive border between in that time The Republic and the Austrian Netherlands was decided with the signing of ‘The Peace of Münster’ in 1648. This after the long Eighty Years’ War. For the Republic it was very important to have Zeeuw-Vlaanderen because in this way they also controlled the what we call know the Schelde.

Germany wanted to close the neutral Netherlands off during The First World War. The border was a electric ‘Dodendraad’. Original the border has a lot of twists. But Germany wanted the fence quickly what resulted is a less exact interpretation of the border. By doing this they made pieces of “no man’s land”. People in this areas were trapped between the Dutch border and the death line. This was also the case in Overslag.

Despite everything, it looks like a quiet little border village that you can drive through in a wink. A village where nowadays only a lost border pole directly refers to the border between the Netherlands and Belgium. Overslag functions as one village. This way, facilities are shared and they celebrate each other’s holidays.

In Overslag is one place where all historical boundaries cross (marked with a red button in the situation). A place that is therefore marked by history. Much of this history has not, or hardly, been visible over the years. By overlaying the times you see the palimpsest of this space.

The campus literally brings out the history of the space. As if the different historical boundaries are being pulled out of the ground like a palimpsest. A campus where the invisible becomes visible again. Where people become aware of the rich history of the at first sight peaceful village.

The various functions of the campus are linked to one of the events of the past. In the old "zoute vaart" for example, goods are no longer transferred but knowledge in the form of an auditorium. After decommissioning of transhipment as a transfer location, we see polder dikes appearing on the map. A dike that is climbed into the building like a staircase with a wide view through the curtain wall at the top. On this floor, work is being done on cooperation between the Netherlands and Belgium instead of working together to keep things dry. The next staircase leads upwards. Along the way there is a visual connection with the private rooms. The short-stay places are visible but not passable just as the "death line" was during the First World War. Where the stairs lead to is the roof. From this roof you have a view of the various places where historic borders entered and left the village.

With this campus I want to show the past and make it clear that you have to know the past to understand the present.