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‘A cacophony of tulips and lilies’ is the general title covering a number
of activities initiated by the Haarlem Emirdag Foundation. KZOD has joined
the initiative and created an exchange project for art and artists between
Haarlem and Ekisehir/Emirdag.
Across religious, linguistic and political borders, by cultural means, the
gap between communities can and must be bridged. In this way a
contribution can be made to mutual understanding, appreciation and
awareness.
The theme of the exchange project is ‘Traces of labour migration’. Its
production and presentation will be done in cooperation. The results will
be exhibited in different places, involving an ever larger group of people
in the project. We want the project to offer an opportunity to meet and
get acquainted with each other’s backgounds. There will be an exchange of
ideas and experiences and each can participate in a variety of artistic
and cultural manifestations. This will promote mutual understanding and
long-term contacts.
The project’s opening exhibition will be on 20th January in the Cloisters
of the Haarlem Town Hall. Mayor Bernt Schneiders will open an exhibition
of 10 artists of KZOD and of the KIM 7 group, the latter representing
artists with a Turkish background.
The theme of the exhibition is ‘origin and destination’. A lot of
emotions are linked with places. Your place of birth or a place you go to.
We constantly change our places and emotions. Nostalgic feelings and
longings accompany us. Migration is a practical social phenomenon
involving a lot of aspects.
This exhibition is the first step in a process.
- - There will be a sequel exhibition in the Philharmonie and De Waag
buildings in March. Subsequently the exhibition will be shown and
expanded at Eskisehir and Emirdag.
- - A supporting working document will be made, in which the artists
clarify their work and bring up ideas concerning the theme.
A major form of migation is the flight from rural areas. This is
happening everywhere in the world, giving rise to urbanization. Migration
also means the transition from an agrarian to an industrial society.
Money, people and knowhow disappear from the rural areas and head for the
city where a completely new development is entered into. Traditional
cultures are under pressure, disappear or must give way to a modern urban
culture. The agrarian society, self-supporting to a large extent, turns
into a financial economy which gradually becomes more and more global and
international.
The Turkish migration to the cities and to Europe is regarded as the
prototype of this development.
Migration consists of departure and arrival. They are covered by the
Turkish concepts of ‘sila’ and ‘gurbet’. ‘Sila’ indicates the starting
point, the roots, the source, the place of beginning. And ‘gurbet’ stands
for nostalgia, suffering, sorrow and longing. Much Turkish poetry reflects
these concepts. Ultimately ‘sila’ (the place of departure) and ‘gurbet’
(the place of arrival) are inevitable elements of life and its continuity.
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