9 Dec 2023
9 Dec 2023
Amsterdam Museum on the AmstelOn Saturday, December 9, the Amsterdam Museum will organize the first free edition (from 18.30 hrs - 23 hrs) of Refresh Late, a series of evening openings with a public program in the context of the exhibition Refresh #2: War and Conflict.
Different program elements will be in English or Dutch.
Program
This evening focuses on how war and conflict affects Amsterdam and its residents, then, now and in the future. Various in-depth activities are organized, including a Write for Rights in collaboration with Amnesty International, short tours, a film screening in collaboration with Movies That Matter and a round table with makers and thinkers. In addition, various artists from Refresh will organize performances.
Opening performance
Time: 20.00 - 21.00 hrs
How can you commemorate wars and victims from other parts of the world? What memorials or rituals can you create to show your connection and compassion and to accommodate your own grief? Memorial #3: Time, Space & Death – In the Silence Of Cosmic Winds is the last in the series of memorials organised by art collective We Sell Reality. With this series of memorials, We Sell Reality will bring people together to process and mourn the impact of war, conflict and violence. This ceremony is dedicated to friends, family and acquaintances who fell into the hands of human smugglers and were enslaved during their flight.
Eternal Child
Time: 20.30 – 21.00 hrs
Artists Nasam Abboud, Yazan Maksoud, and Roua Jafar created a first artistic variant of this mosque in 2020, entitled Pop-Up Mosque (a collaboration with artists Amjad Hashem (1982) and Oussama Diab (1977)). For Refresh Amsterdam #2 they realised a new edition called Hobo: The Traveling Pop-Up Mosque (2023) through which the artists sensitively investigate the Syrian and Islamic cultures they grew up in. During Refresh Late #1, the jamming performance Eternal Child (Reflections) takes place here, a co-production of the artist collective with music artist Jack Beattie.
Jack Beattie, also known as Ekhe, is a British music producer and sound artist. His practice is characterised by performances and improvised electronic music, and ranges from experimental club music to ambient music. In his practice, Beattie techniques that are often marginalised in Western music culture, such as microtonality, notions of dissonance and hardware improvisations.
Filmscreening
Time: 20.15 - 22.00 hrs.
The documentary 5 broken cameras (2011) is shown in collaboration with platofrm Movies that Matter. This documentary chronicles the personal testimony of a Palestinian father who, over a five-year period, recorded the peaceful protests of his villagers against the construction of an Israeli partition wall. Prior to the documentary, a short introductionary lecture will be given by Chris Keulemans.
After the filmscreening there is an option for a conversation.
Write for Rights - Amnesty International
Time: ongoing
December 10, 2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. In cooperation with Amnesty International, the Amsterdam Museum is organizing a Write for Rights as part of "Human Rights Day": a writing campaign for people in need of help worldwide. For example, write a letter to authorities asking for a release, protection or amendment of a discriminatory law. Or write a personal card to the people themselves, to give them courage.
Photo by Eva Roefs, 2023
Meet the Makers Roundtable
Time: 21.15 - 21.45 hrs
The Roundtable What Can You Do? focuses on taking action in times of chaos, frustration and powerlessness. Participants in the panel are makers from the exhibition Refresh #2 War and Conflict, including Tina Farifteh who shall speak about the notion of empathy and her new work 'Me and you'.
Speedtours
Time: 20.30, 21.00, 21.30, 22.00 and 22.30 hrs
Allow museum curators and artists to take you on a verfrissende speed tour through the exhibition Refresh #2 War and Conflict or through the permanent collection of the Amsterdam Museum.
A speed tour starts every half hour from 20.30 hrs onwards. Register and gather at the audio tours station on the ground floor. The last tour departs at 22.00 hrs.
Performance Residue
Time: 21.00 - 22.00 hrs
During this performance, Elena Khurtova and Anika Schwarloze apply earth in a chemical solution to the textiles in their installation, so that these images will slowly change. According to the artists, this is a way to make visible the impact of the 'toxic heritage and ghosts of war'.
Space for reflection
Our exhibition Refresh Amsterdam: War & Conflict opened at the beginning of October and has unfortunately taken on renewed relevance. War is here and now and has a huge impact on society.
The Amsterdam Museum is shocked by the horrific violence against so many innocent civilians in the Palestinian territories and Israel. We express our deepest condolences to their families and other relatives. We also sincerely sympathize with the many residents of Amsterdam who have been affected by this tragedy.
As the Amsterdam Museum, we try to be a home in these difficult times where both inhabitants as well as visitors of Amsterdam can come together. We offer a space for reflection and believe in the healing power of art, heritage and stories. We emphasize the stories of unheard and marginalized voices.
