STATION 3. Jesus Falls for the First Time
Yona Verwer and Katarzyna Kozera: Troubled Waters, 2018, acrylic paint, digital images and augmented reality on canvas; wall panels 61 × 182 cm, floor panels 122 × 210 cm. Interactive artwork. Sound by Alon Nechushtan and Dan Schwartz; video by Francesca Giovanetti and Masha Norman. yonaverwer.com, innmuseo.com
This installation by Dutch American artist Yona Verwer and Polish American artist Katarzyna Kozera, both residing in New York, consists of two manipulated photographs and two floor panels. The latter simulate ‘islands’ in Amsterdam: De Wallen (the red-light district) and Jodenbuurt (the old Jewish neighborhood). The panels are interactive; through iPads and smartphones one can watch short augmented-reality videos and listen to soundscapes. The soundscapes for the Holocaust panel, composed by Dan Schwartz, utilize ambient sounds recorded in 2017 at locations where the famous Februaristaking (February strike) of 1941 against the German occupation took place, while the bottom wall panel is accompanied by the electro-acoustic composition Dark Forces by Alon Nechushtan.
Troubled Waters deals with oppression faced by women in Amsterdam, both past and present. During World War II, thousands of Jewish women were herded together and deported to concentration camps, as shown in the left (here upper) wall panel. However, also today women are put in dark trains, boats or trucks without knowing what awaits them when they disembark. The right (here lower) panel shows these young women, victims of trafficking who are forcibly employed in the sex industry.
Location: Reinwardt Academy, Hortusplantsoen 2. This arts university offers a bachelor’s degree in cultural heritage and an international master’s degree in museology. From 1926 to 1976 it was the location of the J.C. Amman School for deaf children. During World War II the Jewish students and teachers of this school were taken to concentration camps. reinwardt.ahk.nl
text: Marleen Hengelaar