On Friday 12 February 2021 from 12:00-17:00 the Amsterdam Museum, together with its various partners, is organising the Refresh Symposium on the Amsterdam art climate. A symposium in which makers such as Bas Kosters, Massih Hutak and Raquel van Haver together with representatives of cultural institutions such as NDSM-werf, AFK and Amerpodia will critically examine the art climate in the city. The symposium will take place in Felix Meritis and can be watched live for free by anyone interested via www.amsterdammuseum.nl. The symposium is co-sponsored by Pictoright Fund.
On 11 December, the exhibition accompanying the first edition of Refresh Amsterdam, a biennial event around Amsterdam urban culture. The theme of this first edition is 'sense of place'. In the exhibition, twenty-five artists (collectives) reflect on today's city. They chart changes and tell special stories about little-exposed sides of the city. This first edition of Refresh Amsterdam is organised by the Amsterdam Museum together with Amsterdam culture houses such as De Appel, CBK Zuidoost, Compagnietheater, OSCAM, Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten, SEXYLAND and The Black Archives. The collaborations and interactions between makers and cultural institutions in the city is one of our focal points in the public programming accompanying the exhibition.
Programme February 12:
12:00 - 12:10 Welcome
12:10 - 12:30 Presentation by Verdedig Noord on the Rietwijker in Amsterdam North
12:30 - 13:00 Panel 1 - Makers & Living and working spaces (Moderator: Margriet Schavemaker, artistic director Amsterdam Museum)
The city is a cultural and creative hotbed and international breeding ground, making it an attractive place for creatives to settle. We reflect on the positive developments, but also the impact on Amsterdam neighbourhoods such as Zuid-Oost or Noord, where it is slowly becoming unaffordable for many residents to stay there. The City of Amsterdam's incubator policy is under pressure: how do we ensure that affordable living and working space remains available for makers? And how do we build sustainable relationships with cultural incubators and the residents of the neighbourhoods they are situated in? To what extent do we continue to nurture international relationships without competing away from the local maker in the process? The panel will be introduced with a presentation by Defend North.
Participants on this panel are:
- Massih Hutak (writer and musician, member of collective Defend North)
- Tim Vermeulen (director NDSM Wharf Foundation)
- Fana Richters (visual artist)
- Nadia Benchagra (W139 and board member The Case Now)
13:00 - 13:30 break
13:30 - 14:15 Panel 2 - Makers & Labels (moderator: Maurice Seleky, Amsterdam Museum)
From funds and institutions, we see the term 'urban arts' dropped from time to time. These and other labels put the contemporary, urban creator in a particular pigeonhole, delineating under which form of 'art' they fall. Even nightlife, which is precisely so important for the flourishing of the cultural sector, remains structurally outside the realm of 'art'. How can we critically approach such terms and categorisations? What implications underlie similar labels? What are creators up against, and what actually works well in the sector?
Participants on this panel are:
Clayde Menso (director Amerpodia)
Sioejeng Tsao (illustrator)
Christian Guerematchi (dancer and choreographer)
Bas Kosters (visual artist and fashion designer)
14:15 - 14:30 Performance - Don't Hit Mama
14:30 - 15:15 Panel 3 - Makers & Power Structures (moderator: Margriet Schavemaker)
Through various codes and criteria, structural improvement is being worked on within the cultural sector. Although efforts seem to be underway from within to make the sector more inclusive and fair, we regularly see examples that indicate that these goals are still far from being achieved, and that due to power structures and networks, little seems to change. Outside the frameworks of the institutions, criticism of the sector is voiced from various initiatives. How much room is there for institutional criticism, both inside and outside the institutes? What goes well in the relationship between institute and maker, and where are the points that need drastic change?
Participants on this panel are:
- Mechteld Jungerius (collectively Not a Playground)
- Annet Zondervan (director CBK Zuidoost and board member MOKER)
- Raquel van Haver (visual artist)
- Nagaré Willemsen (visual artist and coordinator Black Student Union)
15:15 - 15:30 Break
15:30 - 15:45 Column by Abdelkader Benali based on his essay 'I Contain Multitudes'
15:45 - 16:30 Panel 4 - Makers & Organisations (moderators: Maurice Seleky and Margriet Schavemaker)
Based on the findings of the previous panels, in this panel we engage with representatives of various funds and professional organisations about their relationship to and responsibility towards makers, as well as the Amsterdam Museum itself. Funds and makers need each other, and jointly define the landscape in which they work. How do makers and funds see their mutually dependent relationship and what bottlenecks do they encounter? To what extent can professional organisations and cultural institutions play a role in this? What conclusions does the Amsterdam Museum draw from this symposium?
Participants on this panel are:
- Laurien Saraber (director Amsterdam Fund for the Arts)
- Henriette Post (director Performing Arts Fund)
- Imara Limon (curator Refresh Amsterdam)
16:30 - 17:00 Closing
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