Bonnefanten is presenting two new exhibitions featuring works by artists who re-imagine – and dream of – a path to a better future. This is not the end of the road is the first solo museum presentation by Małgorzata Mirga-Tas (Zakopane, Poland, 1978) in the Netherlands. The internationally acclaimed artist and activist belongs to the Roma people, the largest and arguably the most discriminated and misunderstood ethnic minority in Europe. By drawing inspiration from the everyday life of her own community, Mirga-Tas creates a compelling counter-narrative about Roma culture that is rooted in authenticity and intimacy with the Roma’s own experience.
Enchanting experience
Mirga-Tas’ monumental tapestry series Re-enchanting the World is an attempt to expand and re-interpret European art history and its visual idiom through scenes inspired by Roma culture. In the upper segment, Mirga-Tas enters into critical dialogue with a series of 17th-century prints by Jacques Callot. His etchings and engravings – among the oldest visual representations of Roma in Europe – have strongly influenced the European iconographic tradition of the biased portrayal of Roma as oriental, exotic and suspicious strangers. In an act of artistic reappropriation, Mirga-Tas recreates the scenes depicted in Callot’s etchings to present a dignified image of Roma, which is more reflective of Roma culture and in-tune with how Roma perceives themselves.
From a feminist perspective, Mirga-Tas sheds light on the important role played by remarkable Roma and Sinti women, depicted in large portraits. She underlines the transnational character of the Roma diaspora that is bound together by common history and a sense of solidarity which transgresses national borders. Present in her works are also strong de-colonial themes: as a community regarded by Europeans as ‘non-Western’ and oriental, colonialist practices have left a lasting imprint on Roma lives today.
Linking work
As part of this exhibition, Mirga-Tas has entered into a unique dialogue with Morena Bamberger (Roermond, 1994), a Dutch artist with roots in the Sinti culture which resulted in new works developed by both artists, to show the centuries-old presence of Roma in the Netherlands. Mirga-Tas created textile portraits depicting contemporary women champions of Roma and Sinti emancipation in the Netherlands. In turn, Bamberger created a large-scale installation, which forms the link to the new collection presentation Dream On. It is a caravan that Bamberger sees as a chapel, a small sanctuary that pays tribute to the Sinti and Roma way of life.
Dream On
The new collection presentation Dream On keeps a finger on the pulse of contemporary art and explores a new line in the Bonnefanten collection. More than twenty artists are presented, who are hopeful of putting the world to rights in uncertain and frightening times. The artists put politically and socially engaged topics like decolonialisation and intersectional feminism on the agenda. They claim a place for marginalised groups and vanished cultures, and thus essentially for under-represented and under-valued stories.
Until 16 February 2025 / 30 March 2025
www.bonnefanten.nl