Processing and Guilt

German has a unique word for coming to terms with its wartime past: Vergangenheitsbewältigung. A concept that originated in academic circles and was adopted by Federal President Theodor Heuss in the early 1950s. It’s a compound word that often defies easy translation, and because of the specific historical context in which it arose, is usually… Continue reading Processing and Guilt

To do with Nature

The ever-active parks department of the Municipality of Arnhem really outdid itself this year: around the trees on the median of the Bakenbergseweg in Arnhem, a ribbon of crocuses in two colors bloomed around this spring. As creative as it was, it simultaneously confirmed that coloring outside the lines is a human intervention in nature—an… Continue reading To do with Nature

‘Maidan’ in St. Petersburg

After Sonsbeek 20→24, curated by Bonaventure Ndikung, came to a premature end, the Municipality of Arnhem quickly took the initiative to appoint a new director and establish a new Supervisory Board. The newly appointed director is Orlando Maaike Gouwenberg, who, after studying theater at Utrecht University and attending the Utrecht School of the Arts, enrolled… Continue reading ‘Maidan’ in St. Petersburg

Lezing: De Sonsbeektentoonstelling in het perspectief van de globalisering

Met een nieuwe editie van de Sonsbeektentoonstelling in zicht, geef ik op dinsdag 11 februari in De Bakermat te Arnhem een lezing over ‘de Sonsbeektentoonstelling in het perspectief van de globalisering’. In de tijd dat de Sonsbeektentoonstelling voor het eerst plaatsvond, een paar jaar na de Tweede Wereldoorlog, bestonden er slechts enkele tientallen terugkerende internationale… Continue reading Lezing: De Sonsbeektentoonstelling in het perspectief van de globalisering