Our colonial heritage
by Avantia Damberg
If you have followed me on Instagram you might know about the making of the art work Curaçao Layers, commissioned by the Tropenmuseum.
The title of this semi-permanent exhibition (7 years) is called Our Colonial Inheritance. It stuck with me what the director of the museum said during the press conference: When you open the drawer of your office desk, 90% of what you find in there are materials coming from an ex-colonised country (including the sip of coffee you just had).
The exhibitions makes you realise that the life lived in the Netherlands today is much shaped by its colonial history. I went with a Dutch friend and an of Indonesian descent friend and we had a lot of insightful conversations and questions answered. It took me 3 visits to read and see everything, so take your sweet time.
The Tropenmuseum is one of my most favorite musea. I have worked here during my time as an art student myself. Eventhough the final setup of the art work in Amsterdam went very stressful, I am so humbled and excited to have been able to have the 4 meter high installation hanging there, the care and professiolism of the co-workers of the museum is top-notch. And again I’m thankful for the constributions of artist or designer friends like Len Gillen, Arnold Bakker, Elisabeth Krussand, Adrienne Norman, and Matteo Mariani. I could not have pulled it off alone.
Taken from mailing Avantia Damberg, August 25, 2022.
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