Q.S. Serafijn

2007

Book, 20 x 13.3 cm, 112 p, language: Dutch, publisher: Bleiswijk: Studio 3005/Proba 0006, ISBN: 978 90 7862 7 03 6.
Materials: ink, paper

Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. B 2025/469).

Literary synopsis Clemence Fijnzaat is a visual artist. When working on a project commissioned by the municipality of Amsterdam in the Tsar Peter neighbourhood, an employee of the Amsterdam Historical Museum hands him some unpublished letters of Peter the Great. The letters show the tsar as a modern statesman who understands that the ideas of the Early Enlightenment are important for the development of Russia. Under the influence of epilepsy and a mild form of Tourette syndrome, his ideas acquire an obsessive character. Fijnzaat, who temporarily moves to the Tsar Peter neighbourhood because of his research, starts corresponding with a Dutch historian who appears to be entirely obsessed with the tsar and his ideas. Unexpectedly, her career takes a tragic turn as a result of her research. In various provocative notes, Fijnzaat analyses the nineteenth century Amsterdam neighbourhood and concludes that the traditional image of the Tsar Peter neighbourhood requires adjustment. The Czar Peter File is set in different eras; consequently, the narrative perspective changes constantly. Unrest and tension give way to a sobering worldview. Relation of the novel to the artist’s practice The novella, part of the art project *Tramlijn 10*, was commissioned by the Amsterdam Centre district, the Dienst Infrastructuur Verkeer en Vervoer and the Fonds voor Beeldende kunst, Vormgeving en Architectuur. *Het Czaar Peter Dossier* was written for the inhabitants of the Czaar Peter neighbourhood. ‘Along the new route of tram line 10, district Amsterdam Centre and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts have posted four artworks. The works are located at the new stops in the city centre and refer to the historical background of the area. (...) 'Mr. Q.S. Serafijn has written a short story entitled The Tsar Peter File in the context of the art project. The book can be picked up free of charge during the opening of the artworks.’ (Text of the invitation card) [Novel website](http://www.studio3005.nl/uitgeverij/?foto_id=24)