Laboratory Exhibition

Building Public Truths

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The first of its kind, this exhibition at the Nieuwe Instituut (Rotterdam) explores how design and architecture are being put to work in struggles to verify – and where necessary contest – official accounts of police violence in Europe. With the participation of Forensic Architecture, Forensis, Controle Alt Delete, and Index.

3D model of several bodies stacked on top of one another during a ground restraint, annotated with measurements
The Sean Rigg case – digital model of Sean’s body held to the ground in a prone position, used to counter-investigate his death (2008). Image: Forensic Architecture.
3D reconstruction of an intersection at night, with Luis Bico’s vehicle and the positions of the police officers
3D reconstruction of the circumstances of the death of Luis Bico, shot dead by the police on 19 August 2017 in Châlette-sur-Loing. Excerpt from the Index report attached to the Bico family’s application to the European Court of Human Rights.
3D reconstruction of a building courtyard, with the viewing cones of the videos filmed by local residents shown in red
This reconstruction of the courtyard in Amsterdam Nieuw-West where Sammy Baker was killed uses photogrammetry, among other techniques, to map (in red) the field of view of the videos filmed by local residents during his arrest. These videos serve as evidence in the investigation into his death. Images: Forensic Architecture and Forensis.

Building Public Truths brings together three counter-investigations into deaths during police operations: Sammy Baker in the Netherlands, Sean Rigg in the United Kingdom, and Luis Bico in France. The exhibition shows how spatial tools and counter-investigation techniques can be used to examine official accounts and challenge them, in the service of accountability and justice.

It runs from 4 March to 23 October 2027 at the Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam, with Forensic Architecture, Forensis, Controle Alt Delete, and Index.

View the exhibition