Monday 27 April
A truly important moment has arrived for me. Tomorrow we leave for Suriname — for the very first time in my life, I will visit the country where my father was born, and where part of my mother's roots lie too.
On my social media I write the next post (in Dutch):
Tuesday 28 April
The next day it's finally here, and I can hardly believe it as we wait at Schiphol to depart for the next international location of Art Project Armazoen: Paramaribo, Suriname!
It's a nice flight, during which I regularly check the little screen on the seat in front of me to see how much distance is still left between me and my Father('s)land.
During the last hour before landing, I do nothing but stare outside in anticipation and curiosity. Not much later, the moment arrives. Below me, the blue of the ocean gradually turns into the brown water that announces the coast of Suriname. And then, suddenly… the border… the land… the rainforest, bewilderingly beautiful, impressive and, it seems, endless. I am overcome by a deep emotion, a sense of being moved, of gratitude and awe. In a strange way, I also feel a kind of nostalgia at the same time, one I can't quite place.
Not long after, we land at Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport (Zanderij). As I walk down the aircraft's stairs, I'm wrapped in a wonderful embrace of heavy, warm air, while at the same time — or so it feels — I'm symbolically 'baptised' by a downpour of thick raindrops. A fantastic feeling!
I'm here. Finally!
Wednesday 29 April
After the first overwhelming impressions, and having recovered somewhat from the flight, the next day we meet our contextual programming partner at this location, artist Tolin Alexander.
Also with Tolin we went through an extensive process in preparation of this project.
Tolin shows us the beautiful spot where the sea container stands, at the back of the lawn of the Nola Hatterman Art Academy, overlooking the Suriname River. An inspiring and interesting location, both in general and from an artistic point of view.
Tolin's team is busy with the final preparations to get the sea container — in which Dance Film Armazoen will be shown — technically ready.
A completely different thing that has impressed me greatly is the diversity of animals and birds I've already encountered in less than 24 hours! Especially the black vultures flying above us in large numbers is a beautiful, though here and there also somewhat intimidating, sight...
Thursday 30 April
We're picked up early by Tolin. First we have a nice and interesting conversation with Euritha Tjan A Way for her article on Art Project Armazoen for De Ware Tijd Online. Read the article here (in Dutch).
Straight after, an interview for the programme Magazine on ABC Radio & TV. Tolin and I talk about how Art Project Armazoen came about and about the events planned over the coming weeks as part of the contextual programming.
Sunday 3 May
Today, as part of Art Project Armazoen, I'm teaching the dance workshop "The transportation of a story". It explores the thinking behind how the dance film came about, and how I developed this — starting from a single, very stilled and sober movement — for tracing the path that the main character (played by Desta Deekman) follows in the film.
The participants are experienced dance professionals, which helps make it possible to approach the knowledge, experience and material in a very in-depth way.
Given the context of the film — based on a true story — a lot of emotion surfaced during the closing and the discussion afterwards. Being able to experience the act of giving a workshop in this way is something that will stay with me.
After the workshop, all participants visit the film and write their names on the flag.
At the end of this day, the moment has come for the official opening of Art Project Armazoen in Suriname. After a restrained poetic recitation, words of welcome from various speakers and singing around the sea container, we move to the courtyard of Fort Zeelandia. It is the first time I visit this place, which is, among other things, a deeply charged one. It feels ambivalent. The opening of Art Project Armazoen in Suriname continues here with a ritual musical procession, followed by a lecture and conversation between Hilde Neus and Kamau Ware of Black Gotham Experience (our partner in the US).
Thursday 7 May
As a joint part of the contextual programming on this day, "Nerdy Thursdays" is presented: a collaboration between Art Project Armazoen's Suriname partner Tolin Alexander and American partner Black Gotham Experience.
Another wonderful and inspiring programme, featuring the musical lecture "Songs among People of African Descent" by Liesbeth Peroti and the spoken word performances "We The People" by Kokolampu, presented by Zulile Blinker and participants of her workshop group, which was put together especially for Art Project Armazoen.
I take part myself in the "Artist Talk", in which I'm in conversation with our US partner Kamau Ware of Black Gotham Experience, discussing topics such as background, the experience of identity, art, aesthetics, and how Art Project Armazoen came about.
The evening is closed musically by DJ Jemaya.
Saturday 9 May
As part of the contextual programming, Afra presents a film workshop today. Participants get an insight into the ins and outs of how Dance Film Armazoen came about from a production point of view. It is an interesting and valuable part of the programme, giving a good impression of what the producer and production side involves in setting up such a large-scale project.
Sunday 10 May
Yes, and then suddenly everything feels like it has come to a standstill! Many roads are flooded due to persistent rain. I look in awe at the amount of water coming down. But after being warned about this in the Netherlands, I did prepare for it and brought my rain boots!
Monday 11 May
This morning I go to the Nationaal Archief (National Archives) to continue my research into my father's side of the family. Family history fascinates me. It makes me think about how experiences are passed on to subsequent generations, consciously or unconsciously, how this does or doesn't contribute to self-image and the experience of identity, and how far its effects can reach. This visit also reminds me of my visit, a few years ago, to the Slave Registers (part of the Dutch National Archives) in The Hague, during the search for my mother's biological Black father. Following on from that, it also makes me reflect once more on the story behind Art Project Armazoen, which formed the basis for the dance film: the act of the five enslaved women jumping overboard from the ship Hof van Zeeland in the early morning of 8 March 1733. We will never be able to know more about their intentions, their lives before this act, the lives they left behind (one of these five women lost her life), and the personal experiences of the lives that awaited them (four of these women were 'saved' — they were, after all, valuable human merchandise that the MCC (Middelburg Commercial Company) had almost lost).
What role do archives play? Who decides how such archives are compiled? Who decides whose history is written into our history, in what way, and by whom? Whose stories are actually (re)told, and from what background?
I continue on to the building next to the Nationaal Archief, the Centraal Bureau voor Burgerzaken (Central Bureau of Civil Affairs). Here I make a first appointment in an attempt to obtain a copy of my father's birth certificate, something that ultimately turns out to be less easy than expected. This certificate matters to me both as a personal keepsake and for practical reasons. With this document I can apply for a PSA document (Persoon van Surinaamse Afkomst, or Person of Surinamese Origin) — an official status and proof from the Surinamese government for people abroad who were born in Suriname, or of whom one or both parents were born in Suriname, but who hold another nationality. It makes travelling to Suriname easier and may provide an exemption for carrying out certain types of work.
After a short stop at home, we visit the Dutch Embassy, where Afra, Tolin and I have a meeting with Ambassador Walter Oostelbos and Policy Officer for Culture and Heritage Marijke Sonneveld. Prompted by Art Project Armazoen, we have a very interesting conversation about our shared history in general, our history of slavery, its continuing effects in the present, (national) identity, and more. What's lovely about the conversation is that there is room for the expression of (sometimes very) different perspectives, which also makes it fascinating to observe the conversation from a certain emotional distance.
Afterwards, the flag is signed by both members of the Dutch embassy.
In the early evening I visit Ballet School Marlène, where I give a classical ballet workshop, consisting of a class and sections from various pieces of the classical ballet repertoire, including the entrance of the swans from Swan Lake.
It is a wonderful afternoon and evening, and I'm very grateful that I've finally managed to visit this location and to meet Marlène Aminah Lie A Ling, founder of this special ballet school, in person!
Tuesday 12 May
Today I once again give a dance workshop, this time at Ballet School Charlotte Sprangers, led by Lilian Sprangers. And once again a fantastic group of enthusiastic and eager-to-learn participants! I love giving these workshops in these 'tropical' temperatures, but I have no idea how many litres of water I'm getting through! Afterwards I'm pretty wiped out, but it's all more than worth it!
More on this journey soon...