At the heart of the political capital of the Netherlands, a 10-day multidisciplinary festival was taking place. Artists from eight different countries, some based on the Netherlands and other not, would put together an elaborate art exhibition. Apart from the exhibition there were workshops, talks, and other events.
Wasteland - Streams of Waste, is a contemporary exhibition exploring and presenting the vast amounts of waste generated, usually which goes unnoticed. It also presents the journey this waste goes through to eventually, but certainly, have a huge environmental impact negatively. As well as an impact on our social and economical world, which is rarely visible.
The exhibition took place in "The Grey Space in the Middle", which I found not difficult to find, but difficult to understand. It is a cafe, a networking space, an exhibition hall? No clue.
The workshops and exhibition would take place here, but many parts of the festival would also take place in other locations.
The workshops are designed to break away from typical fashion and bring hands-on experience with generating and dealing with waste, as well as a focus on how this waste creates a larger, unseen problem. It is one thing to handle and create waste on a daily basis, but through the workshops, guided by experts, understanding the impact of our daily activities becomes much clearer.
This art installation caught my attention immediately. I did not attend the workshop that took place just before the exhibition opened up, and I just reached in time as the team ended their recap meeting.
Being first meant I could take my time to truly absorb the meaning of the installations like a sponge without the distractions of others buzzing around.
Motherboards, brainchild of Selma Selman. The Bosnian artist and activist put together this "Matrix" styled installation of a performance they had done some time earlier.
There are headphones to listen to the performance which makes it even more interesting. Selma and her co-performers take hammers and break these electrical appliances almost as if to resembles savages cutting into an animal for meat. The aim is to scavenge the central processing units that carry gold.
Dry Twig, The Permanent Coloniality, performed by Batolina Xixa. The Argentinian activist and artist is seen dancing in the rubble, between broken mattresses,plastic bags, basically a dumping ground. I was amazed to find out that this was self-choreographed. Some people are just incredibly talented. The lyrics of the song sing about the inequality and rigorous abuse of the South and Latin America. It was the dumping ground from ages when under colonial rule, filled with atrocities, and now it is still is a dumping ground filled with trash in return for a few bucks. Resources are constantly being sucked out of the region and left with trash. The Permanent Coloniality. Very powerful message.
I sat on these airbags as I watched the performance. I had to watch it twice. The first time I couldn't get my eyes off the beautiful choreography and the second time I was completely dazzled by the message.
It is a part of the global operations that I was not aware of before. The current economic burden on the region, further pressed by the Sword Act 2017, is something I had never learned of. Truly eye opening.
Ecologies of Invasive Cargo by Noud was yet another eye opening installation.
Unfortunately, I have also partaken in activities that has given rise to this installation.
Cargo by ship is by far the most popular method of transport for goods around the globe. Almost 90% is done through cargo ships. The habit of consumerism coupled with need for cheapest option is the main reason for cargo by ships being so popular.
Apart from the obvious pollution caused by fuel, there is one massive ecological impact that goes unnoticed- invasive species.
The installation, shaped like containers, has images of living byproducts. A lot of water is pumped for floatation support during export, and this water is then dumped during import. It makes for a very easy route for organisms to migrate into foreign territory and create an ecological imbalance. Now the local species are faced with the challenge of surviving against invasive foreign species. According to the artists, over 7000 species have been transported globally like this.
The exhibition really opened my eyes. I was able to learn a lot through this exhibition. I still am processing the other installations. I want to understand, research, and learn more about what they presented before I share with you. Clearly, individual responsibility is important irrespective of how insignificant it means. It also starts with education. Somehow, when I think of the root cause, I always end up to one word.
Can you guess the word I'm thinking of?
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