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Until January 23, 2025 AT Central Space
#43 (Where and for Whom?) Listening to the Absences
Manifestation #43
Central Space

The fifth group show in Buro Stedelijk's Central Space with Simomo Bouj, Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi and Martin Toloku

#56 Repainting Subway Art
Manifestation #58
Central Space
Free Tickets

A book launch of 'Repainting Subway Art' by Tripl a.k.a. Furious, with a talk by Martha Cooper, Terror161 a.k.a. Json, moderated by Dr. Edward Birzin

#76 Cosmic Entanglements
Manifestation #76
Central Space

Join us for a film evening linked to 'Goddess Change', the monthly speculative fiction reading group initiated by artists Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz, with works by Patricia Dominguez and by Black Quantum Futurism.

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Studio Space

Monthly 'Reading Group Goddess Change' hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz – Paulus Potterstraat 13, Amsterdam
Central Space

Manifestation #43: (Where and for Whom?) Listening to the Absences Manifestation #43, a groupshow with Simomo Bouj, Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi and Martin Toloku
Central Space

Manifestation #49: SISTAAZ OF THE CASTLE, a screening of 'Sistaaz of the Castle' hosted by Duran Lantink and Jan Hoek.
Central Space

Manifestation #56: Repainting Subway Art, a book launch of 'Repainting Subway Art' by Tripl a.k.a. Furious, with a talk by Martha Cooper, Terror161 a.k.a. Json, and moderated by Dr. Edward Birzin

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Buro Stedelijk is a hybrid art space that celebrates community and encourages experiment and boundary-pushing art. As a decentralized observatory, it is attentive to community needs and promotes artistic expression.
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#1 Listening Sessions

From listening to reflecting: thoughts on the Manifestation #1 Listening Sessions

by Naema Abdi Ali & Anna-Rosa van Wees.

preface
notes from the writers – Naema Abdi Ali

In my vision, the arts have the potential to bring people together in new ways by placing social relationships, aspects of daily life, ‘care’ and life stories in new contexts. This means that the arts not only create a (critical) space to reflect & to innovate, but also create space to celebrate and support life stories and social relationships. My interests as a researcher and curator focus on long-term change; globally & locally. I approach such themes through (micro) histories of resistance, by analysing power structures; always in connection to the present and the future; embodied in the arts. I am inspired by my educational background in museology, post/decolonial studies, migration, climate justice, ritual studies, cultural analysis and feminist studies. From this place I wrote my reflection on the Listening Sessions.

Listening for two days was a fun exercise; seeing the many layers in which the arts have the potential to facilitate different ways of presenting, delivering labour, curating and story-telling was very inspiring. Much gratitude to the team of Buro Stedelijk.

notes from the writers – Anna-Rosa van Wees

The arts hold the power to help us see the world differently. A longstanding intuition of mine has been that art is not an agentless material ‘thing’ but rather a ‘doing.’ My goal as a researcher is to re-imagine new ways of being and doing through artistic, curatorial, and institutional interventions, bridging theory and praxis. I believe that new and radical perspectives are never born in isolation, but are rather the complex entanglements of different histories and knowledge. For this reason, I always strive to use an interdisciplinary approach within my work, while recognizing the situatedness of my own knowledge. My overall practice is informed by my educational background in museology and cultural analysis, as well as my own experiences as a Malaysian-Dutch woman navigating the arts and cultural sector in the Netherlands. In my reflections on Buro Stedelijk and the Listening Sessions, I draw upon my interests in queer-feminist, post/de-colonial, phenomenological, affect, and environmental/ecological justice studies.

In the same way we – and many others – envision Buro Stedelijk as an ecology, this reflective essay-of-sorts operates as one too. Together, we have attempted to map out a constellation of different ideas and practices that we have absorbed from the Listening Sessions and believe should guide the future of the institution. While it was not possible to reflect on every presentation or idea put forth in the Listening Sessions, we are grateful to have been in the presence of many inspiring thinkers, artists, and performers in the span of two days. In producing this text, we, therefore, hope to have laid out a conceptual toolkit for institution-building; for envisioning new relations at Buro Stedelijk and beyond.

crafting a resonant space
by Anna-Rosa van Wees

Over a span of two consecutive days, Buro Stedelijk proffered a space in which participants from all walks of life could come together – physically or virtually – with a sole purpose: to listen. In a society where voice lies at the forefront of politics and activism, Buro Stedelijk shifts our attention to the importance of being fully present and listening to the other. It was thus decided beforehand that everything would exist at the moment. This ultimately meant that no recordings of the sessions were made and no presentations would be uploaded online. As writers that have been asked to document the Listening Sessions, this idea felt initially challenging. There is an innate pressure to have our pens ready for exhaustive note-taking and critical questioning. The problem that this seems to create, however, is that we leave ourselves with little time or space for authentic connection. And so, Naema and I gave ourselves permission to do exactly what Buro Stedelijk wanted us to do. Listen. Take home what resonated. Our experience of these sessions was not always the same. While I may not have remembered every presentation, it was this very concept of resonance that brought this text to life.

I first heard of the notion of resonance from Stephanie Schuitemaker and Berber Meindertsma as they spoke to us about the importance of hosting within art spaces. Resonance, in their words, is a moment in which one feels a vibrant connection with the other. Such moments are rare, unforced, and vital for transformation. We might begin by returning to a moment in which you walked into an art space and were truly moved. Many of us may consider the term ‘moved’ solely within the framework of emotions; a profound emotional response that follows an encounter. These moments, however, are temporary and individual, and our values or knowledge systems tend to remain unchanged. As I search for a particular memory, I realize such an experience did not occur to me until the Listening Sessions. While I cannot speak for everyone who was there, I believe I carry a better understanding of what it means to be moved — that is, how art (spaces) and encounters can compel our bodies to take meaningful action or impact the orientation of bodies in new ways (an idea which I pull from Sara Ahmed in Queer Phenomenology). These moments, by contrast, produce lasting effects that transcend the spatiotemporal framework of the event or exhibition itself.

In search of a way to expand upon my reflections, I want to consider the Listening Sessions through a broader framework of resonance. In physics, resonance denotes the phenomenon in which an oscillating object causes another in close proximity to do the same, resulting in a sound. While I am by no means a physicist nor am I particularly concerned with exploring their physical properties here, it is this peculiar relationship that speaks to me the very essence of listening. As we come into proximity with others in the act of listening, a chain reaction is produced, giving force for new meanings, ideas, and affects to emerge. It is precisely this rippling effect that informs my interest in writing about resonance here. As I continue to gather a more concrete understanding, questions emerge. What does it mean for Buro Stedelijk to become what we might call a ‘resonant space’? What are ways of ‘making’ and ‘doing’ that may facilitate resonance, bridging the gap between theory and praxis? As a way of tying some of these knots together, I reflect on the Listening Sessions through my encounter with the spatial layout and design.

One of the main features that stood out to me about the Listening Sessions, and perhaps most overlooked, was the malleable seating arrangement. With a background in Architecture Design from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Frédérique Albert-Bordenave enacts an experimental space through which new relations are constructed. As such, the artist’s work invites us to reflect on the role spatial design might play in mediating a resonant space. The arrangement began as more akin to a traditional classroom or lecture hall, wherein each individual sat forward-facing on rows of long benches. As the days unfolded, these arrangements continued to evolve into miscellaneous forms — diagonal lines; a square format; and occasionally, in reverse. With these changes, speakers could also choose how they wanted to present. Whether it was sitting amongst the audience, standing in the middle, or presenting at the back, the possibilities for re-configuration were endless.

Writing about a seemingly modest seating arrangement is no random choice, but rather an entry point for thinking about the mediation that occurs across various scales. While there were moments to laugh about which way the audience needed to face, it was clear that this fluidity brought a sense of vulnerability and connection. As the distances between host, speaker, and audience began to collapse, a collective gaze was formed — something which I believe is lost within a traditional museum conference or symposium layout. My point here is to remind us of the impacts and relations that might be created through smaller practices, particularly as they become entangled with broader movements of social and ecological justice. Envisioning the spaces we occupy as interconnected ecologies is what Stephanie and Berber seem to get at in their re-invention of traditional hosting practices in art spaces. If resonance requires space, then museums and cultural institutions seeking to mobilize change through discursive platforms must recognize what alliances are being formed in the very spaces they are held. In this respect, I am eager to see how Buro Stedelijk explores the intersection between space and resonance within its design practice.

Positioning Buro Stedelijk as a resonating space demands that we re-think museums and cultural institutions as sites of affective embodiment. Moving beyond the longstanding belief that they are first and foremost spaces of education, we must contemplate ways to engender room for connection; healing; transformation. It is, in the ideas of Stephanie and Berber, about creating a ‘living ecosystem’ constituted of various agents. Thinking about resonance as more than phenomena but also as relationship, space, discourse, and praxis, can provide us with an alternative way of thinking about momentum and change. It may start with the mere act of listening, but it is even more importantly the creation of an ecology between human, non-human, and more-than-human worlds.

on positionality:
by Naema Abdi Ali

An artistic space that aims to experiment has to know the reality in which it operates. It has to be aware how it tries to differentiate and in which ways it will not (yet). Listening to reflections on the art scene in Amsterdam was an interesting and experimental step in the right direction. What remained vague was what happens after listening. This caused the sessions to feel like a void in which information resonated against the wall; without a clear intention as to what the goal of listening was; seemingly happening in a neutral and open space. This void evoked momentum for deep listening, something which I applaud. But, it remains vital to return to reality; to then attach concrete actions to what has been understood. Hoping people are actually moved to change personal and collective habits & values.

Positionality is defined as the social and political context that creates identity in terms of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability status. Positionality also describes how identity influences, and potentially biases, the understanding of and outlook on the world.

Although positionality is fundamental in understanding the world, it does not stop there. The decisions made after understanding positionality are crucial. And then the work still continues as the world is always changing, and so will the positionality of a person, space or object. Looking at the intersections of art(ists), academic(s) (institutes) and cultural institutes, many more factors influence the positionality of these spaces. Some of these intersecting factors were a recurring theme during the Listening Sessions, serving as a warning of observed phenomena in the arts.

Buro Stedelijk – Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam
The listening sessions started with a look back on the previous version of Buro Stedelijk: Stedelijk Museum Buro Amsterdam (SMBA). In an article in the NRC, Rein Wolfs (Artistic Director of Stedelijk Museum) explained his vision for Buro Stedelijk:

“The idea behind it is that the ideas that young creatives in the Netherlands can easily
be fed back to the museum. That is also why the successor to [SMBA] is located in the
museum itself, […].”

Although I am personally excited for an experimental artistic space, one of the biggest disappointments was the fact that it will be located within the museum. Being situated within the museum means that the Buro Stedelijk will have to experiment and make meaning within the walls, policies and rules of a larger institute. No doubt will this pose difficulties for the Buro.

Manifestations #1: The Listening Sessions
During the Listening Sessions I sensed the urgency for a place that truly diverts from normalised (institutional) practices; be that a diversion from academia, cultural institutions, art schools and even (established) galleries. The longing for a breath of fresh air was omni-present. I hope the Buro will intervene in the local discourse together with the communities & professionals residing in Amsterdam. That the Buro may be a generative space in which artists & ideas are born through facilitating new connections between people in & outside the art scene.

I usually enter my reflective space after talking to people. Anna-Rosa and I met up over coffee with Basir Mahmood (a collaborator of Buro Stedelijk) as all of us were producing something in relation to the Listening Sessions. In this conversation we concluded that solutions to systemic issues within and outside the arts sector must have a stronger impact than the problem has had, for it to come close to repairing damage. Based on what I heard during the sessions, this translates to the hope for better labour conditions, a climate friendly arts sector, a re-scripted art space that is not the white cube, ethical funding and an art scene that re- imagines realities and generates solutions & possibilities.

But, repair reinforces existing structures, that is not the goal. During and after repair there is space to create new structures. One way the Buro could contribute in the pursuit of realising repair & that which lies beyond, is by facilitating the creation of ideas that will outlast this experimental space, so that when the money stops flowing, the impact remains and can be built upon in the future.

the long breath: asking the impossible, imagining the unthinkable
by Naema Abdi Ali
”Embrace knowing that you have been manipulated and scammed by a violent system as powerful evidence. Now with this knowledge you can grieve, repair, rest and heal. [...]. Where do we place the grief of our treatment [...]? How do we transform grief to power?” -
Tricia Hersey, Rest is Resistance - A Manifesto

We live in a complex world with many stakeholders, a grey area that seems endless and many intersecting complex power structures. The reality of this knowledge and assessment of your individual position in this world can lead to exhaustion, to analysis-paralysis. Engaging on this level of complexity thinking requires constant self-evaluation accompanied with emotions like ambivalence, grief, anger and despair.

It has become clear, however, that in the coming decade(s) radical change has to happen; several crises are intersecting and apocalyptic scenarios become more real everyday. But there is a collective concrete utopia people are working towards, embodied by intersectional climate justice. Ernst Bloch (1885–1977) coined the term concrete utopia and distinguished the term ‘concrete utopia’ from ‘abstract utopia’. In Misha Kakabadze’s blog they write that “the distinction signifies that which is actually possible and realisable vis-à- vis an emancipatory ideal. A concrete utopia is a concept that signifies potentiality, but one grounded in the real, existing socio-economic and political conditions of a given context. The indicator for what is possible or realisable in a concrete utopia is not whether something is realisable in theory, but in actuality.” They continue using the example of the Paris agreement in 2015: “it may be possible in theory to achieve the climate goals of the Paris Agreement of 2015 peacefully, but reality presents a wholly different picture.”

Returning to realistic change is humbling and expansive at the same time. The ‘long breath’, as we say in Dutch, is used commonly as metaphor for the slow resonating power it takes to achieve large-scale, long-term change. The reality of existing within that long breath is what I am trying to grapple in this reflection.

complicity. guilt. responsibility.

This concrete utopia (intersectional climate justice) has to be manifested materially and metaphysically. Penashe Chigumadzi beautifully worded the synchronicities and urgency between these modes of ontological thinking in her Nelson Mandela Lecture 2023:

“Transatlantic Slavery is the material and metaphysical womb of the modern world our enslavers and colonisers know. […] What is capitalism if not a system for sorting who is most fit for exploitation and extraction? […] We must think the unthinkable, and demand the impossible of this world. […] The gift of our own historical memory and consciousness is a freedom from a teleology that dictates that this is the only World is possible or even desirable. It gives us understanding that the world that we have is not inevitable or permanent, it is historically contingent and constructed. Armed with ancestral memory it is up to us to participate in history and to end this world. We know that reparations of transatlantic slavery and colonisation will bankrupt the west and collapse its economy. To this we say: let go of your ill-gotten property. We must love ourselves, our ancestors and our unborn enough to end this world.”

The arts can:

  • embody the message that this World is not inevitable or permanent
  • facilitate concrete & fantastical imaginations of the cultural shift needed to end the world as we know it
  • imagine the unthinkable and pose the questions that ask for the impossible

Each of the collaborators added something speaking to specific histories, ontologies, cultures, ecologies and communities. Working from this framework allows for listening and care to take central place in art(-making & -education), facilitating opportunities for understanding, conversation and concrete action. Art can appeal to our mind in many varying sensory ways, unique to each person. Approaching learning, conversation and understanding in this way can inform cultural and political discourse, creating potential to arrive at a more accessible and participatory paradigm.

emracing failure
by Anna-Rosa van Wees

What initially drew me to Buro Stedelijk was its claim to serve as an “experimental observatory” for exploring new ways of being and doing. As a researcher in Museum Studies, I see this move as part of the larger New Museological paradigm where museums and cultural institutions deliberately attempt to break away from hegemonic narratives and norms. Despite being a complex and multi-layered concept, ‘experimental’ seems to have become yet another commodified buzzword in the arts and cultural scene. As Viviane Tabach explores in her ongoing research “Moving Basis: Art Mediation as Institutional Critique,” the seemingly inevitable risk of fostering artistic experiences (in this case, an ‘experimental’ one) is that they become institutionalized and commercialized insofar as the public turns into consumers. How, then, should Buro Stedelijk imagine itself with regard to these frictions and fragilities?

Let us begin with failure.

I believe what sets a true experimental space apart from others is its ability to embrace failure. My understanding of failure as a productive framework stems from my own previous engagements with queer theory in museological practice, most notably from the works of J. J. Halberstam. To be clear, failure here is not the refusal of moral or ethical responsibilities. Rather, failure is about rejecting the hegemonic frameworks that define ‘success.’ Simone Zeefuik’s presentation shows us how rest is a form of resistance to the capitalist logic of success: hard work; financial wealth; linear progress – to name just a few. She primarily situates her discussion from the perspective of Black creatives and cultural producers, who often feel the only way to be merited in the art world is by abandoning their own desires in exchange for more work opportunities. Instead, she allows us to see the importance of disrupting this linearity in order to open up new possibilities for unexpected pleasures and self-expression. I find that Simone offers a refreshing perspective on what embracing ‘failure’ can bring to artists and creatives alike, and I am greatly inspired by her words to take more rest in my own practice.

Another example I found myself reflecting on is the upcoming design of Buro Stedelijk by Setareh Noorani. As an architect and researcher at Het Nieuwe Instituut, Setareh’s practice draws upon queer, feminist, and post-colonial theories in what she refers to as the ‘de- scripting’ (or perhaps ‘re-scripting’) of institutions built upon dominant and oppressive systems of power/knowledge. As spectacles of power, museums have traditionally served as places to enforce fixed ideologies and govern bodies, oftentimes in more subtle forms that are overlooked.

This varies from the way visitors move via prescribed routes to the social codes of dressing and behaving. By adopting a fluid and playful DIY approach to the spatial design of Buro Stedelijk, Setareh crafts an experimental playground-of-sorts that simultaneously attends to the personal needs and desires of individuals who feel institutionally excluded. There are opportunities to sit, hide, reflect, rest, or (dis)connect – each encounter is rendered unique whilst being part of a larger ecology of experiences. I see Setareh’s practice as not only a way of de-scripting the rigid ‘white cube’ format adopted by several art spaces, but as one of many possibilities of how we might engage with failure in and as praxis. More specifically, I consider her integration of craft into the design – a traditionally relegated art form that reverberates with the everyday, the banal, the minor, and the ephemeral – as a productive form of failure that works to subvert the hierarchies of taste. Looking at the Buro’s inseparable relation with the Stedelijk Museum itself, however, I am curious and slightly skeptical as to how these contrasts will play out in practice. While these frictions ignite difficult challenges and conversations for Buro Stedelijk, I believe it is within this experimental space of possibilities that they are well suited to be held.

As a way of closing my reflections on the subject, I want to cite and adapt an excerpt from my own research “Queer Matter(s): Towards a Politics of Care in Contemporary Exhibition Practice” in the context of Buro Stedelijk:

An orientation towards failure means to recognize and work within the constraints with which the [projects and exhibitions in Buro Stedelijk] are produced. This includes the impossibilities and hierarchies maintained by museums [and the Stedelijk a.k.a. the ‘Mothership’], the implications of geopolitical contexts, the ongoing colonial dynamics and heteronormative, capitalistic logics which shape knowledge production and subjectivity, as well as financial restraints. To embrace failure is to avoid viewing [Buro Stedelijk] as a completed product, but rather, as what Luther describes, a “fragile collection of struggles brought into being.” The transformative potential of failure, however contradictory it may seem, thus lies in its ability to illuminate the rigid hierarchies and power structures that ultimately govern or suppress production, audience reception, and inclusion in the context of art spaces.”

(2022, p.28)

To experiment is to fail and vice versa. However, failure must always be understood in relation to the very systems and structures that separate the good from the bad; the right from the wrong. My aim in writing about failure is to show that we can harness its power into a productive force, and we can turn to these instances here as starting points to learn. But perhaps most of all, failure will require us to temporarily dwell in the discomfort it may create. Only then can we pave the way for a new reality, towards a brighter and more hopeful future.

From listening to reflecting: thoughts on the Manifestation #1 Listening Sessions

is a place to discover Amsterdam’s dynamic and forward-thinking art scene.

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#34

Manifestation

November 14, 2023
7:00 – 19:00
Until January 14, 2024
Studio Space

#34 What Can’t It Do?

See the work by Waèl Allouche in our Studio Space. He asked an early version of the current ChatGPT: “What is it a flag can’t do?” This question unexpectedly got answered in a very political way.

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Frédérique Gagnon

#57

Manifestation

August 22, 2024
17:00
Off-site Local

#57 New Suns – in conversation with Gilleam Trapenberg

After more than two months, Gilleam Trapenberg’s manifestation: ‘New Suns’ on the windows of Kunsttraject for Keti Koti Westerpark, is coming to an end. On Thursday 22 August at 17:00, we host a conversation with the artist at the Buurtwerkplaats, Cliffordstraat 36 in Amsterdam. Afterwards, you can walk the route through the neighbourhood and have a drink.

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Andrea Voets

#3

Manifestation

May 25, 2023
21:00 – 1:00
Until March 25, 2023
Off-site Local

#3 Afterparty – Decay: An Ode to the Impermanent at kanaal40

with 1.06 Music Library and Michael Ekow & May

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UNSEEN

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Stephanie Schuitemaker

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Ahmad Mallah

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SistaazHood

#15

Manifestation

November 4, 2023
19:00 – 02:00
Central Space

#15 Cosmism

During Museumnacht, we present a selection of films by John Akomfrah, Saodat Ismailova, and Viktor Vasylenko in the Buro Stedelijk Central Space. The program explores cosmic musical forms and the (philosophical) potential of space, science fiction, immortality and infinity.

Before Distortion (2023 – ongoing)

by Don Yaw Kwaning / material experiments with plant-based raw materials and semi-finished products

Collaborator

Lydienne Albertoe

#42

Manifestation

October 17, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#42 Tell It Like It Is

Join us for the finissage of 'Manifestation #39: To Be Determined', where we will say goodbye to not just three artists but also one immense mural by Kenneth Aidoo.

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Timothy Aarons

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Phantom Wizard

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S*an D. Henry-Smith

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Ammodo

#26

Manifestation

May 23, 2024
Until July 18, 2024
Central Space

#26: Script 1: Whispers (Tell The Waters What The Clay Kept Secret II), by Ola Hassanain

Artist and architect Ola Hassanain intertwines family history with the materiality and temporality of water and clay. For this manifestation, Hassanain shares her ongoing visual research into the spatial implications of catastrophes. In this provocation the artist zooms in on an intimate ‘site of catastrophe’: her grandmother’s house.

#62

Manifestation

November 30, 2024
14:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#62 Reading Group Goddess Change

Reading Group with Pırıltı Onukar, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space.

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Oded Rimon

#22

Manifestation

December 7, 2023
18:30 - 19:30
Central Space

#22

Ranie Ribeiro performs on harp on December 7 at the Central Space. A live performance as part of Manifestation #16: Descent into Fungal.

Collaborator

Renzo Martens

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Kenneth Aidoo

Kevin Osepa: Process during Manifestation #8 To Be Determined

This summer, Marcel van den Berg, Kevin Osepa and Mirre Yayla Séur relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Collaborator

Müge Yılmaz

Collaborator

Valerie Oluwatoyin Abeji

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YUME YUME

#47

Manifestation

May 25, 2024
15:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#47 Reading Group: Goddess Change

Reading Group with Fiep van Bodegom, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space

Collaborator

Naema Abdi

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LazerGazer

#17

Manifestation

September 14, 2023
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#12 Rehearsing (the Care for) Decay

Mirre Yayla Séur performs 'Rehearsing (the Care for) Decay' on September 14 at our Central space. A live performance as part of her ongoing process during Manifestation #8: To Be Determined.

Collaborator

Don Yaw Kwaning

#10

Manifestation

August 3, 2023
14:00 – 16:00
Studio Space

#10 Beauty Basics for Queer People

Trans-inclusive makeup workshop by Timothy Paul. Join Caribbean Queer Salon for this live make-up tutorial.

Kenneth Aidoo: Process during Manifestation #39 To Be Determined

This summer, Kenneth Aidoo, Lorraine Hellwig and Nazif Lopulissa relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

#1

Manifestation

April 14, 2023
11:00 – 17:00
Until April 15, 2023
Off-site Local

#1 Listening Sessions

Buro Stedelijk’s manifestation #1 Listening Sessions, is an engaging and thought-provoking two-day event on April 14 and 15.

Collaborator

Leontine Coelewij

Lorraine Hellwig: Process during Manifestation #39 To Be Determined

This summer, Kenneth Aidoo, Lorraine Hellwig and Nazif Lopulissa relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Collaborator

Sarah Schulten

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Lorraine Hellwig

#45

Manifestation

March 23, 2024
15:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#45 Reading Group: Goddess Change

Reading group with Marly Pierre-Louis, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space

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Simomo Bouj

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Off-site Int’l

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Martin Toloku

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Niovi Zarampouka-Chatzimanou

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Jelmer Wijnstroom

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Gilleam Trapenberg

#4

Manifestation

June 4, 2023
16:00
Until July 2, 2023
Off-site Local

#4 Keti Koti Westerpark X Buro Stedelijk

with Atelier Code Noir and Frank Creton

#31

Manifestation

January 11, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#31 Hosting Darkness

hosted by Berber Meindertsma and Stephanie Schuitemaker

#33

Manifestation

January 25, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#33 Are You Still Resonating?

Finnisage of Manifestation #16: Descent into Fungal – An evening with Inge Meijer and chamber choir Les Moucherons led by Antje de Wit

#50

Manifestation

June 2, 2024
24/7
Until July 2, 2024
Studio Space

#50: KETI KOTI X ROOTS TO FRUITS

Every year on the 1st of July, we commemorate slavery and celebrate the abolition of slavery: Keti Koti. In the month prior to this day, we show new work by artist and graphic designer Mirelle van Tulder on the windows of Buro Stedelijk’s Studio Space facing the Paulus Potterstraat.

Collaborator

Hana Nina Hussein

Collaborator

Basir Mahmood

Nazif Lopulissa: Process during Manifestation #39: To Be Determined

This summer, Kenneth Aidoo, Lorraine Hellwig and Nazif Lopulissa relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Collaborator

Duran Lantink

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Touchy Studios

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Charl Landvreugd

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Geo Wyex

#43

Manifestation

November 28, 2024
Until January 23, 2025
Central Space

#43 (Where and for Whom?) Listening to the Absences

The fifth group show in Buro Stedelijk's Central Space with Simomo Bouj, Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi and Martin Toloku

Collaborator

Drankerij

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Irina Djojoatmodjo

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Narges Mohammadi

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Rita Ouédraogo

#32

Manifestation

January 18, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#32 Film screening by Kevin Osepa

Join us to watch LA ÚLTIMA ASCENSIÓN and Watamula

The Slope (2023)

by Ola Hassanain

#46

Manifestation

April 20, 2024
15:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#46 Reading Group: Goddess Change

Reading Group with Nat Muller, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space

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Ruyzdael Publishing

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Kaiden Ford

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Joram Kraaijveld

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Donghwan Kam

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Kanitha Tith

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Drums of the Earth

#40

Manifestation

September 19, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#40 NEO NEO DADA – Act I, II and III

Lorraine Hellwig performs 'NEO NEO DADA – Act I, II and III' on September 19 at Buro Stedelijk's Central space. A multi-media performance as part of her ongoing process during 'Manifestation #39: To Be Determined'.

#17

Manifestation

July 2, 2024
Online

#17 Rehearsing institutional de-scripting: A machine for manifestations

by Setareh Noorani

Collaborator

Anne Lakeman

Descent into the Fungal (2017)

by Andrey Shental

#61

Manifestation

October 26, 2024
14:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#61 Reading Group: Goddess Change

Reading Group with Anna Arov, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space.

Collaborator

Marjet Zwaans

Klof, village of spirits (2020 – ongoing)

by Kevin Osepa

Collaborator

Fanta Sylla

Collaborator

senakirfa A.

Marcel van den Berg: Process during Manifestation #8 To Be Determined

This summer, Marcel van den Berg, Kevin Osepa and Mirre Yayla Séur relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Collaborator

Alanna Archibald

Collaborator

Geert Vlieger

#44

Manifestation

November 28, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#44 Opening – #43: (Where and for Whom?) Listening to the Absences

The fifth group show in Buro Stedelijk's Central Space with Simomo Bouj, Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi and Martin Toloku, with a live performance by Simomo Bouj.

Collaborator

W139

Collaborator

Wes Mapes

#76

Manifestation

January 9, 2025
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#76 Cosmic Entanglements

Join us for a film evening linked to 'Goddess Change', the monthly speculative fiction reading group initiated by artists Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz, with works by Patricia Dominguez and by Black Quantum Futurism.

#26: Audio introduction by Artist

Manifestation #26: Script 1: Whispers (Tell The Waters What The Clay Kept Secret II), by Ola Hassanain

Collaborator

Joenoes Polnaija

#8

Manifestation

August 14, 2023
Until October 15, 2023
Central Space

#8 To Be Determined

This summer, Marcel van den Berg, Kevin Osepa and Mirre Yayla Séur relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Era of TDC (2024)

by Martin Toloku

Collaborator

Fonds 21 – Henk Christophersen

Collaborator

Christelle Oyiri

Collaborator

loopey

From listening to reflecting: thoughts on the Manifestation #1 Listening Sessions

by Naema Abdi Ali & Anna-Rosa van Wees.

Collaborator

Nat Muller

KETI KOTI X ROOTS TO FRUITS

Read and see more about the design process behind Manifestation #50: ROOTS TO FRUITS X KETI KOTI by Mirelle van Tulder

Collaborator

Kunsttraject

Same Taste

by Basir Mahmood

Collaborator

Lakisha Apostel

#2

Manifestation

May 25, 2023
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#2 Opening – Decay: An Ode to the Impermanent

with an inaugural performance by Sedrig Verwoert, Alanna Archibald, Phantom Wizard and Ranie Riberio

Collaborator

Frédérique Albert-Bordenave

Collaborator

Adriana Knouf

Collaborator

Viviane Tabach

Memories of becoming (2022/2023)

by Narges Mohammadi

#21

Manifestation

November 30, 2023
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#21 Opening – Manifestation #16 Descent into Fungal

with an inaugural performance by Queer Choir Amsterdam

Collaborator

The Memoria Collective

Collaborator

Dr. Edward Birzin

Collaborator

Marcel van den Berg

Collaborator

Atelier Code Noir

Mina Rwina DIR (2024)

by Simomo Bouj

#23

Manifestation

February 15, 2024
Until March 31, 2024
Central Space

#23 TRUTH

a video installation by Miles Greenberg, open daily from 10:00 – 18:00 with a Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam ticket

Collaborator

Mirre Yayla Séur

Grown head to toe outfit (2023)

by YUME YUME

61 FRAGMENTS OF DECAY FOR NEW DESIRES (2023)

by Joël Andrianomearisoa

#67

Manifestation

November 2, 2024
Online

#67 FLIGHT

An accompanying essay to 'Manifestation #58: The Black Film Critic Syllabus', by Fanta Sylla

Collaborator

Emily Shin-Jie Lee

A Whispering Dam (2024)

by Ola Hassanain

Collaborator

Bnnyhunna

#37

Manifestation

June 2, 2024
Until July 2, 2024
Off-site Local

#37 Keti Koti Westerpark

For the second edition of Keti Koti Westerpark, we welcome you in the installation by Kevin Osepa at 'het Meterhuisje' in Westerpark, Amsterdam.

Collaborator

Quinsy Gario

Collaborator

Gwen Parry

#16

Manifestation

November 30, 2023
Until January 25, 2024
Central Space

#16 Descent into Fungal

The third group show in the Central Space with Milena Anna Bouma, Don Yaw Kwaning, Andrey Shental and YUME YUME

location

Off-site Local

Collaborator

Azu Nwagbogu

Collaborator

Tripl

Collaborator

Nina666

Collaborator

Emily Pethick

Collaborator

BijlmAIR

Collaborator

Simone Zeefuik

#55

Manifestation

September 15, 2024
24/7
Until October 31, 2024
Studio Space

#55 In Motion, Tracing the Familiar

See the work of Stephen Tayo, BijlmAIR's artist in residence, on the windows of Buro Stedelijk’s Studio Space facing the Paulus Potterstraat. While inhabiting different places and spaces such as Paris, New York, Lagos and Amsterdam, Tayo continues his research into the essence of a city and the quest for the familiar.

Collaborator

Chandler Smith – HXSSY

#9

Manifestation

June 30, 2023
17:00 – 18:00
Off-site Local

#9 In conversation with Frank Creton

Join us Friday for a Q&A with artist Frank Creton at Meterhuisje

#58

Manifestation

December 19, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#56 Repainting Subway Art

A book launch of 'Repainting Subway Art' by Tripl a.k.a. Furious, with a talk by Martha Cooper, Terror161 a.k.a. Json, moderated by Dr. Edward Birzin

#41

Manifestation

October 3, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#41 Strange Soil

Nazif Lopulissa presents 'Strange Soil' on October 3 at Buro Stedelijk's Central Space. A curated programme as part of his ongoing process during 'Manifestation #39: To Be Determined'.

#58

Manifestation

November 2, 2024
19:00 – 0:00
Central Space

#58 The Black Film Critic Syllabus

A curated film evening during Museumnacht by writer and thinker Fanta Sylla, the founder of 'The Black Film Critic Syllabus'.

Collaborator

Niels Staats

#5

Manifestation

June 30, 2023
Until July 2, 2023
Studio Space

#5 Dia di Lucha pa Libertat

Every year on the 1st of July we commemorate slavery and celebrate the abolition of slavery: Keti Koti. Since we believe that Keti Koti should be a national holiday, we are closed on the 1st of July. We asked Lydiënne Albertoe to design a graphic work for this particular occasion. The work is placed on the door of our Central Space and the windows of the Studio Space.

Collaborator

Shigeo Arikawa

Respect for the forest

Fragments of conversations in Saamaka tongo Recordings: January - March 2023 in Pikin Slee (SR) Marjet Zwaans, Edje Doekoe, at Buro Stedelijk Amsterdam (NL) Transcribed and translated with Vinije Haabo

Collaborator

Robbie Schweiger

Collaborator

Q

#7

Manifestation

June 18, 2023
14:00
Off-site Local

#7 Breaking Bread

Cassave bread with Lelani Lewis

Collaborator

Yvette Mutumba

Collaborator

Black Quantum Futurism

Collaborator

Ngozi Onwurah

#39

Manifestation

August 15, 2024
Until October 17, 2024
Central Space

#39 To Be Determined

This summer, Kenneth Aidoo, Lorraine Hellwig and Nazif Lopulissa relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Dormancy Trail
(2023)

by Milena Anna Bouma

Dia di lucha pa libertat

Design process behind #5 by Lydienne Albertoe

Collaborator

Ana Bravo Pérez

Collaborator

Martha Cooper

#35

Manifestation

November 15, 2023
19:00 – 21:30
Off-site Local

#35 Zonder Gelijkheid, Geen Vrede

Seeping Waters (2023 – 2024)

by Ola Hassanain

Collaborator

Ernst van Deursen

Mirre Yayla Séur: Process during Manifestation #8 To Be Determined

This summer, Marcel van den Berg, Kevin Osepa and Mirre Yayla Séur relocate their studios to Buro Stedelijk and generously invite us into their creative process. Together we explore artistic interventions that challenge modes of ‘exhibiting’, interaction and museological practices.

Collaborator

Vinger.nl

Collaborator

Kevin Osepa

Collaborator

Saodat Ismailova

#29

Manifestation

December 28, 2023
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#29 Mixtape

Experience Manifestation #16: Descent into Fungal with sound by bk owusu

Hybrid Listening

an architectural intervention by Frédérique Albert-Bordenave

Collaborator

Stephen Tayo

Collaborator

Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi [aka crazinisT artisT]

#59

Manifestation

June 1, 2024
24/7
Until September 22, 2024
Off-site Local

#59 Keti Koti Westerpark x Kunsttraject

Come see the series New Suns by Gilleam Trapenberg on the windows of Kunsttraject in the Staatsliedenbuurt.

Collaborator

Miles Greenberg

Collaborator

MINA RWINA

#2

Manifestation

May 25, 2023
Until July 25, 2023
Central Space

#2 Decay: An Ode to the Impermanent

with Joël Andrianomearisoa, Narges Mohammadi and Geo Wyex

Collaborator

Pauline Curnier Jardin

Collaborator

Alina Lupu

Collaborator

Queer Choir

Collaborator

Nazif Lopulissa

Home is Resistance (2024)

by Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi [aka crazinisT artisT]

##60

Manifestation

September 28, 2024
14:30 – 17:30
Studio Space

#60 Reading Group: Goddess Change

Reading Group with Ilga Minjon, hosted by Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yılmaz in Buro Stedelijk's Studio Space

Collaborator

kanaal40

Collaborator

Ilga Minjon

Collaborator

Ceder Rorije

Collaborator

Rice, Peas, Roots and Culture

Collaborator

Sedrig Verwoert

#27

Manifestation

December 14, 2023
18:30 - 19:30
Central Space

#27 Circle Dance the Fungal

Join Özgür Atlagan, Donghwan Kam, and Kanitha Tith in making a collective Super 8 mm film around YUME YUME's Living Mycelium Dunes.

#20

Manifestation

November 16, 2023
Until November 19, 2023
Off-site Local

#20 Taking Root Among the Stars

In collaboration with Buro Stedelijk, Anna Hoetjes and Müge Yilmaz will create an intimate space at UNFAIR23. The booth will offer a moment of rest, pause, to go through the books and reflect on the patchwork sky.

Collaborator

bk owusu

#49

Manifestation

December 5, 2024
18:30 - 20:30
Central Space

#49 SISTAAZ OF THE CASTLE

Join us for a screening of the film 'Sistaaz of the Castle', hosted by Duran Lantink and Jan Hoek.

Collaborator

Setareh Noorani

location

Studio Space

Paulus Potterstraat 13, 1071 CX, Amsterdam

Collaborator

Michael Ekow & May

Collaborator

1.06 Music Library

#18

Manifestation

November 1, 2023
Central Space

#18 Kunstenaar op zaal

Collaborator

Antje de Wit

Collaborator

Anna Arov

Collaborator

Uno Fujisawa

Collaborator

Andrey Shental

#28

Manifestation

December 21, 2023
18:30 - 19:30
Central Space

#28 tremor (thunder)

On December 21 at the Central space, S*an D. Henry-Smith performs live as part of Manifestation #16: Descent into Fungal.

Collaborator

Joël Andrianomearisoa

Collaborator

Anna-Rosa van Wees

Collaborator

Rubiah Balsem

location

Online

Collaborator

Mirelle van Tulder

Collaborator

Terror161 a.k.a. Json

Collaborator

Mati Diop

Collaborator

Fiep van Bodegom