In 2020 over forty-five artists have been working at ROZENSTRAAT’s space to independently create a Gesamtkunstwerk inspired by the exceptional and mythic year 2020.
The project, in which ‘the unknown’ and a conscious lack of control were leading, started with a small number of artists who were approached by the ROZENSTRAAT team. This selection was made based on age and experience, gender and nationality to stimulate diversity as much as possible. Each artist invited another artist, and another, creating an uncontrolled trace of artists.
Further development of the project thus was completely outside the control of ROZENSTRAAT. Loosely based on the cadavre exquis principle, this set up replicated the idea of uncertainty but also of improvisation.
2020 can be regarded as a time-document of an unprecedented period in which the importance of resilience, solidarity and connectedness rarely has been so clear. The project reflected on the past and speculated on the future by uniting an amalgam of perspectives by artists based in, or strongly connected to, Amsterdam. This made it unintentionally also a project that maps and connects social networks. With 2020, ROZENSTRAAT wanted to show solidarity with artists in Amsterdam and also to spread its network in an organic way.
Participating artists were: Tyna Adebowale, Salim Bayri, Sema Bekirovic, Renata de Bonis, Nadie Borggreve, Simnikiwe Buhlungu, Koen Doodeman, Maartje Fliervoet, Hreinn Fridfinnsson, Marije Gertenbach, Gluklya, Paul Goede, G. Lucas Going, Ehsan ul Haq, Saemundur Thor Helgason, Michiel Hilbrink, Lucas Huikeshoven, Rosa Johanna, Juliacks, Wjm Kok, Susan Kooi, Irene Kopelman, Marijn van Kreij, Aram Lee, Raul Marroquín, Maria Mazzanti, Vika Mitrichenko, Yitzhak Izek Mizrahi, Francisco Mojica, Ruchama Noorda, Thierry Oussou, Ian Page, Daniel de Paula, Eva Pel, Alejandro Ramírez, Arefeh Riahi, Martín La Roche, Kathrin Schlegel, Praneet Soi, Lily van der Stokker, Iqra Tanveer, Maxim Tyminko, Lara Verheijden, Roosje Verschoor, Evi Vingerling, Tchelet Pearl Weisstub, Tatyana Yassievich and Dan Zhu.
This exhibition was curated together with Dorothé Orczyk and Sjoerd Kloosterhuis.
