Beyond Return
Dutch museums (still) house thousands of objects stemming from former colonies. Discussions about the need to return them abound.
In the research project “Ownership, Value and the Question of Colonial Heritage in Museums“ (lead by the Vrije Universiteit), next to scholars from different disciplines, also artists engage with this colonial heritage. Artists can help us understand what it means if objects are taken from their everyday use contexts, local environments, and climate conditions. They seek ways to allow us to ‘empathize’ with these objects, to re-activate them, or to learn from them. Aram Lee does so by inviting us to perform the gestures once used to handle “Tropical Objects”.
In collaboration with VU Art Science Gallery, Katja Kwastek (professor of contemporary art history at VU Amsterdam, and researcher in the Pressing Matter project) and artist Aram Lee (artist and currently resident in the Pressing Matter project) will have a conversation on Aram Lee’s work “Tropical Objects, Turns” (2019), exhibited in the “Creating The Commons” exhibition.
19:30 - 20:00 | New University building | VU Art Science Gallery
Guided tour VU ART SCIENCE gallery
The VU ART SCIENCE Gallery connects art, science and current affairs.
The gallery host will be happy to tell you more about the current exhibition Creating the Commons. This exhibition explores the co-creation of art and science.
19:00 + 20:00 | New University building | mobile showcase Atrium
