The Dutch East India Company (in Dutch: Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie; VOC) was established as a chartered company in the 17th century. In this period Indonesia was colonized by the Netherlands from 1602 up until 1949. During this long period of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia industrialization happened, as much as cruelity.

A lot of groups, like ancestors of people directly, can be created. There are many different positions you can take about the colonial past, and one would guess that opinions are depending on the family history. In our research we found out that opinions do not correlate within the borders of these groups as much as we had expected them to.

This project called 'What Past is Past?' is the visualization of the different point of views on the Dutch colonial past in Indonesia. It shall show that for instance that the question of generation is more important, than stereotypes in heritage.

Created by Bohye Woo and Jakob Zerbes