Document met bericht aan M.J. Sanou Possibly 1942

This document, printed in Amsterdam on October 13th, 1942, was issued by “Der Beauftragte für den Vierjahresplan,” or “The Commissioner for the Four Year Plan.” At first glance, it is a seemingly bureaucratic form. But we must ask, what is the public role of this art? What are the politics of imagery? This document comments on the social structures of its time. Made during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, the document informs one M.J. Sanou that his Indian motorcycle, built in 1938, has been seized by the German authorities. The Four Year Plan was a Nazi initiative to prepare Germany for war, including the confiscation of resources from occupied territories. This simple form reveals the machinery of oppression, stripping individuals of their property under the guise of administrative procedure. Understanding this document requires historical research into the Nazi occupation and the Four Year Plan, resources readily available in archives and libraries. The meaning of art is contingent on its social and institutional context.