The Delft Perspective: Under Pressure
15 May 2023 09:00 till 31 December 2023 18:00 - Location: TU Delft Library, Main Hall | Add to my calendar
THE DELFT PERSPECTIVE ON SECURITY
MUSEUM PRINSENHOF DELFT
In 2022 it is 450 years ago that William the Silent, Prince of Orange, (1533 - 1584) fled to Delft, in search of a safe haven. For the Museum Prinsenhof Delft, this is a reason to direct its Delft perspective to the subject of security. What does security mean to the people of Delft, like refugees, descendants of colonialism in the Caribbean, students and young people? To answer this question, the artist Hozan Zangana engaged in dialogue with members of these communities. Inspired by their stories, opinions and experiences, he created the sculpture series MALAWA.
MALAWA, HOME in Kurdish, suggests the universal basic need for safety; a state of being that provides a secure foundation from which to grow and build a life. When the home and everything that provided structure to life is left behind and nothing but insecurity awaits, bodies, at their most vulnerable, become a substitute for what a home provides. The MALAWA sculptures express such bodies, in materials that refer to a life on the move, such as jute, blankets and tent cloth. Together they express the state of anguish of bodies trapped in an unstable situation between past and future, trying to provide each other comfort.
EXHIBITION: LEJAR FISHAR / UNDER PRESSURE
MUSEUM PRINSENHOF DELFT x TU DELFT LIBRARY
As a result of Hozan's interaction with the Delft student community, the satellite artwork 'Under Pressure' was created. The TU Delft Library was chosen as the preferred exhibition space by the students who specifically mentioned that when they think of a safe place, they think of the Library.
The sculpture translates the feeling of insecurity of an important part of the Delft society: university students. Their fears stem from the constant pressure they experience from high expectations, from parents, peers, and from themselves. The image is of a casting mold they are expected to fit into, a mold that does not allow space for individual needs and secretly held dreams and ambitions.
THE ARTIST: HOZAN ZANGANA
Hozan Zangana is a Kurdish artist and designer, specializing in sculpture and functional objects. At the age of fifteen, he fled to the Netherlands, where he studied, a few years later, at both the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam and the Design Academy in Eindhoven.
Hozan finds inspiration in language, tradition and rituals. According to him, these are the most fundamental, intangible elements in our world. Also, he often makes use of passions from his childhood and his experiences as a refugee in the Netherlands as a basis for his artistic ‘perspective’. He enthusiastically engaged with his work for The Delft Perspective on the subject of security and has developed strong ties with the participating communities. In this way, he has created an image (literally and figuratively) of the meaning of security; a subject that has been a constant theme in his life since childhood.
In 2021, the Museum Prinsenhof Delft launched the four-year participation project The Delft Perspective. With this project, the museum aims to strengthen its relationship with the city and its residents by connecting the museum’s collection, the story of William the Silent, and the history of the city to topical social themes such as women, security and freedom.