[work] My Journey as a Witness

The Prince Claus Fund organized the presentation of the book My Journey as a Witness by photographer Shahidul Alam (Bangladesh) on 24 January 2012 in FOAM Amsterdam.

Speakers are Shahidul Alam who in addition to being a photographer is writer, activist, and social entrepreneur and Rosa Maria Falvo, writer and curator specialised in Asian contemporary art. After that Bas Vroege, photographer and director of Paradox, will have a public discussion with Shahidul and the audience can ask questions. American Photo magazine selected My Journey as a Witness as one of the 50 best photo books of 2011.

Lucid and personal, My Journey as a Witness has 130 photographs tracing Alam’s artistic career, activism, and the founding of photography organizations. From early images shot in England to photographs of the last two decades in his native Bangladesh, this is a journey from photojournalism into social justice. Alam’s superb imagery is matched by his perceptive accounts, at once deeply intimate and bitingly satirical. 

[work] Prince Claus Fund Reader

The Prince Claus Fund Reader presents a thematic selection of the extensive publishing practices of the Fund. This selection includes the Prince Claus Fund Journal, the Prince Claus Awards Books, the books published under the Prince Claus Fund Library imprint, and cultural magazines supported by the Fund. The Reader offers a fresh view into the history of the Fund. In making unexpected connections, even articles from the earliest days find relevance.

[work] Lives Behind (Dec 2011 to Mar 2012)

Photographer Rena Effendi (Baku, 1977) creates work that is an eloquent testimony to human dignity and resilience. Rena Effendi is honoured with a 2011 Prince Claus Award ‘for her remarkable portraits of individual lived experiences in zones of silence, for documenting the social impact of rampant, profit-driven ‘development’ and for raising awareness of social realities in contexts that require developmental support.’

The exhibition Lives Behind follows Effendi’s ten-year journey of documenting the struggles and small triumphs of people, mainly living in the countries of the former Soviet Union. Yet the story of the exhibition transcends geographical borders to become a collective portrait of people who have survived isolation, ruin and devastating pollution. Somehow they are maintaining an independent existence despite being caught between an unstable past and a frightening future. Lives Behind provides photographic proof that too many people are stranded in the wake of industrial development, expansion and capitalism.


The exhibition can be visited from 13 December 2011 till 9 March 2012 on Mondays till Fridays from 10.00 hrs till 17.00 hrs in the Prince Claus Fund Gallery, Herengracht 603 in Amsterdam.

[Work] Through the Eyes of Van Leo (Sep 2011)

In the 1950s, the Egyptian revolution made Cairo into the cosmopolitan center of a vibrant society. Can the city once more have that role in the aftermath of today's Arab Spring?  Prominent and original photographer Van Leo (1921 - 2002) knew at the time how to capture the zeitgeist with his advanced photography. 

On Thursday 29 September 2011 the Prince Claus Fund and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts in collaboration with De Balie, organize an evening related to the work of Van Leo, providing a unique look at the Cairo of the past, but we also look at the current situation and the Cairo of the future.

[work] Shanghai Contemporary 2011 (Sep 2011)

The Prince Claus Fund participated at the Shanghai Contemporary 2011 at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre from 8 – 10 September 2011. This is the first time the Prince Claus Fund is presented at an art fair.

For the 5th time the Shanghai Contemporary will highlight the work of galleries that promote innovative practices and research and nurture the creative movements that are crossing China and Asia, changing the global cultural landscape. The fair will be held inside and outside the walls of the Shanghai Exhibition Centre, involving galleries, the city's cultural and educational institutions, alternative and independent art spaces, and the most advanced expressions of the city's creative industries and the media.

[work] Becoming Van Leo: A Work in Progress (Jul to Nov 2011)

“Night club dancers during World War II”, Van Leo ©Arab Image Foundation

The photographs of Armenian/Egyptian photographer and 2000 Prince Claus Laureate Van Leo (1921-2002) give a unique insight in the cosmopolitan and vibrant society of Cairo in the second half of the 20th century. 
Van Leo also made hundreds of self portraits that were ahead of their time. He was one of the most prominent studio photographers of his time. 

This exhibition is organized as a part of the International Art Programme in Amsterdam of the Prince Claus Fund and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts and is curated by Negar Azimi and Karl Bassil, Arab Image Foundation.

The exhibition can be visited from 7 July till 11 November 2011 on Mondays till Fridays from 10.00 hrs till 17.00 hrs in the Prince Claus Fund Gallery, Herengracht 603 in Amsterdam.

[work] Prince Claus Fund Reader #3

The third edition of the Prince Claus Fund Reader offers a series of articles and publications that focus on understanding and identity. It discusses the ways in which identities construct processes of understanding.


The Prince Claus Fund Reader presents a thematic selection of the extensive publishing practices of the Fund. This selection includes the Prince Claus Fund Journal, the Prince Claus Awards Books, the books published under the Prince Claus Fund Library imprint, and cultural magazines supported by the Fund. 


The Prince Claus Fund Reader #3 is edited by Siri Driessen, project managed by Keefe Cordeiro, with advice from Malu Halasa

[ideas] The Biennial Reader

I attended the launch/lecture event of the publication The Biennial Reader: An Anthology on Large-Scale Perennial Exhibitions of Contemporary Art, which was presented at The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.
Speakers included Cláudia Cristóvão, Ute Meta Bauer, Solveig Øvstebø, and Gerardo Mosquera
This event was held on 10 June 2011.

[work] Fragments of Tradition, Beauty and Hope (Mar to Jun 2011)

Students of Bamiyan Photography projects crossing a small river by Abdullah Shayagan

In the province of Bamiyan, situated in Afghanistan’s central highlands, thirteen young men and women (amateur photographers) from different districts were invited to look at their environment through the lens of a camera.
The exhibition, Fragments of Tradition, Beauty and Hope, shows the results of a workshop offered by the 3rd Eye Photojournalism Center and supported by the Prince Claus Fund. The photographs illustrate the resilience of people in the midst of conflict. These photographs also give a unique and personal insight into the geographic, social and political context of life in Afghanistan and the reconstruction and peace-building efforts that are going on. 

The exhibition can be seen from 31 March 2011 until 17 June 2011 in the Prince Claus Fund Gallery at the Herengracht 603, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Exhibitions in the Gallery are free to visits by the public from Monday to Friday from 10.00 hours – 17.00 hours

[work] Transit Tehran: An evening of contemporary Iranian photography (Feb 2011)

Listen, 2010, Newsha Tavakolian

The Prince Claus Fund and De Nieuwe Kerk organise an evening about contemporary Iranian photography that features guest speaker Malu Halasa and photographer Newsha Tavakolian. Malu Halasa is a journalist and the editor of the book Transit Tehran: Young Iran and Its Inspirations. During this evening, she will present the fascinating beauty and heroic resistance of contemporary photography in Iran, and will interview the young but already renown Iranian photographer Newsha Tavakolian. 

The evening will focus on contemporary Iranian photography. Photos will be shown by young Iranian photojournalists and artists, who use their cameras to explore their country’s current state of turbulent social change. These photos reveal a different and burgeoning image of Iran, a country that many westerners mainly associate with ayatollahs and nuclear plans. 

[work] Scars & Other Remnants (Dec 2010 to Mar 2011)

still from South China Sea Pishkun, 2009, Dinh Q. Lê

Scars & Other Remnants, the first solo exhibition of works by Dinh Q. Lê to be held in the Netherlands, will open on Wednesday 15 December 17.00 at the Prince Claus Fund Gallery. Dinh Q. Lê (born 1968) is considered one of the most important and influential contemporary Vietnamese artists.


The works of Dinh Q. Lê examine genocide, consumerist glitz in disadvantaged places, and the promotion of Vietnam as an idyllic paradise for tourists. The Scars & Other Remnants exhibition in the Prince Claus Fund Gallery will show a variety of his works including South China Sea Pishkun, two photo weavings and the Damaged Genes installation.


Scars & Other Remnants is exhibited at the Prince Claus Fund Gallery from 16 December 2010 till 18 March 2011. The Prince Claus Fund Gallery is located at the Herengracht 603 in the centre of Amsterdam and is open on workdays from 10.00 am till 5.00 pm. Free Entrance.

[ideas] remix-mas 2010 (Dec 2010)

For the impending festive season, I made a series of low-fi (decal-ed, stencil-cut and collaged..), remix-mas tourist postcards.

(click on each image for a detailed view)

Here's wishing you a Happy Sinterklaas-Xmas-Boxing Day-post Xmas sale-ramp up to New Year's Eve-champagne & sparklers- season!

[ideas] Speak,memory symposium (Oct 2010)

I attended Speak, memory; a three day symposium organised by Townhouse Gallery (Cairo),  structured around presentations, panel discussions, screenings, and artist talks exploring the rich array of methodologies that can be adopted to unearth, revisit or reactivate past artistic practices.

Speak, memory was from 28 to 31 October 2010

[ideas] 10.10.10

Some time in 2009, it occurred to me that this time this year, it would be the numerically synchronous moment it is..

and after consideration/deliberation/procrastination; this is my contribution to the sometimes-mysterious, always-astounding way of the universe, combining two of my favorite things:

[work] Prince Claus Fund (June 2010 till present)

I am currently employed at the Prince Claus Fund, a platform for intercultural exchange.

The Fund works jointly with individuals and organizations in mainly Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean for the realization of activities and publications reflecting a contemporary approach to the theme of ''Culture and Development'