The world of 'Nashi' and 'the other'
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure for me to be here. If I see the works of art around me it fills me with pride, which is a bit strange because it is no merit of mine. But being a Dutchman abroad and seeing what the Netherlands is capable of, what the Rietveld Academy is capable of, what these young people are capable of is a source of pride for me.
There is so much tradition in these films and these pictures. It is so deeply intertwined with Dutch figurative arts from the 17th century. Seeking to sublime by showing the banal is something that is very essential in Dutch figurative art. Wanting to show the world as it is, through that trying to find the underlying sources of culture is something that is clearly present in Dutch art. And also this internal play, looking for the right light and the combination of light. This is something you see in all sorts of ways, also with these four young artists today.
I could say many, many things about them, but there is one artist I really want to mention, with all due respect to the others, but it’s a very personal thing and that is Miss Cahen and her project in Russia. She has done something tremendously interesting by showing this interesting organisation called Nashi. And Nashi means ‘those who belong to us’. Which is a way of creating a feeling of belonging, which at the same time is also a way of excluding. If you say Nashi, you imply that there are ‘others’. Others that don’t share your views, others that are a threat to your position, others that want to take something away from you.
And this is very nicely portrayed in the picture because the dangerous element is that rejection of the other is combined with sublime feelings. People that want to be healthy, want to study hard, want to take care of each other… combined with a feeling of rejecting what is different. Seeing ‘the others’ as a threat. I think this is an essential element in modern society and Miss Cahen is to be praised for her efforts to show this, through the banal of these young people and what they are doing. We see the sublime of the ideas behind it.
When you look at the Rietveld Academy, you see that almost half of the students are not Dutch. They come from all over the world, attracted directly by what the academy has on offer. And somehow, when they leave the academy, at the end of their studies, there is this streak of Dutch culture in their work. At the same time Dutch culture is enriched by the ideas and creativity they brought from where they came from.
That is looking at the world the way I like it. Not a world of Nashi, of ‘ours’ and ‘the others’. But a world where people meet, where they share ideas, where they get elements of other cultures, incorporate them, digest them in their own culture to make their culture richer. If anything, this is something The Rietveld Academy and Sandberg Institute are showing here.
The Rietveld is actually the first academy to take position at the biennale. I also understand that others are quickly going to follow. Again, this is a source of pride, and I congratulate all those involved with this great initiative.
Do not miss ‘One Minutes’ by the way, which is also in the Dutch tradition of having people simply registering the world and in combination of these registrations, showing the sublime. I find it really inspiring.
I hope you will all be inspired, learn from each other and create this interaction across the borders. Because I do believe that a world that is composed of Nashi and the others is not the world that will help us along in the twenty-first century. And now, I officially open the exhibition.
Thank you.