Program
Concerts
St John Passion by Bach
The Passions by Bach are highlights in a long tradition that started with the reading of the biblical passion story with different voices. Reading evolved into recitation. Next, reflections on the story were inserted like arias and chorales. Bach wrote the St John Passion for Palm Sunday. The Bach Ensemble Amsterdam sings the second version of 1725 directed by Paulien Kostense. In this version Bach added two theatrical arias, while the other arias are more meditative. || Doopsgezinde Singelkerk, Sunday 10 March, 3 pm
Music around the Stations of the Cross
The medieval song ‘Stabat mater dolorosa’ is about Mary mourning at the foot of the cross. A couplet was often sung at each station. The Hieronymus Ensemble, directed by JanJoost van Elburg, will perform the Stabat Mater by Orlando Lassus, plus two other works related to Holy Week: Miserere by Carlo Gesualdo and parts from the Lamentations of Jeremiah by Thomas Tallis. || Waalse Kerk, Friday 15 March, 8.15 pm
Voices of Salt Water Skin
The frail balance between humans and nature as portrayed in the installation Salt Water Skin Boats by Erica Grimm also characterizes the compositions of the Genetic Choir, which create order and meaning out of chaos and arbitrary sound. The interaction between the singers mirrors human as well as natural processes and creates spaces of sound that are intimate and timeless. This performance takes place in cooperation with the Van der Leeuwstichting. || Waalse Kerk, Saturday 30 March, 12 am – 3 pm
Choral Evensong
The Vocaal Theologen Ensemble, under the direction of Hanna Rijken, sings an Anglican Choral Evensong. || Keizersgrachtkerk, Sunday 31 March, 7 pm
Poetry Concert and Bach Suite I
A variety of poetry and the performance of Bach Suite I: Two dancers, Corneliu Ganea and Fernando Oliveira, move in duet around Camillo Cabassi who plays the six movements of the Bach suite on cello: prelude, allemande, couranre, sarabande, menuet and gigue. A mysterious counterpart between vulnerability and strength, pain and comfort, death and life. || Doopsgezinde Singelkerk, Sunday 14 April, 2 pm
text: Klaas Holwerda
Academic Research
The multiform relationship between religion and art has been the subject of a growing academic field since the late nineteenth century. In the disciplines of art history, religious studies, anthropology, museum studies, theology, and philosophy, religion and the arts is a much-discussed topic. Initiated by Professor Aaron Rosen and the Rev. Dr. Catriona Laing, Art Stations of the Cross not only is liturgically innovative but also incorporates academically relevant dimensions. Supported by the Sormanifonds and Gladstone’s Library, the Amsterdam edition of 2019 is the first time research will be conducted on the question how visitors experience this art pilgrimage. Do art lovers walking this path transform into a type of pilgrim? How do the displayed artworks and the religious heritage sites facilitate experiences of the themes around the Stations of the Cross? And to what extent is the art route exemplary for ongoing discussions about the relationship between tourism and pilgrimage? These questions are at the heart of the research during the Amsterdam edition. If you would like to participate in the research by sharing your experiences of visiting Art Stations of the Cross, please be in touch via .
In addition to this research project, Art Stations of the Cross is also cooperating with various academic institutions. The spring meeting of the Dutch Association for the Study of Religion is on the theme of art and religion, and the Camino Academy has organized a walk along a selection of stations for interested pilgrims. Excursions have also been organized for museology students of the Reinwardt Academy and for students, PhD candidates, and researchers of the Protestant Theological University. Such engagement from higher education demonstrates how a project like Art Stations of the Cross relates to urgent complexities of religion’s diverse manifestations in a superdiverse world.
text: Lieke Wijnia
Public lectures
Vernissage
With a lecture by Désanne van Brederode, an installation presentation by Erica Grimm and a performance by Güler Ates. || Waalse Kerk, Wednesday 6 March, 5 pm
Reinwardt Memorial Lecture
Aishwarya Tipni on ‘The Havali Project, Old Delhi’ as an example of management of cultural heritage. || Reinwardt Academie, Thursday 7 March, 8 pm
Govert Jan Bach, St John Passion by Bach
An introduction to the performance of this magnificent work at 3 pm in the same location. In Dutch || Doopsgezinde Singelkerk, Sunday 10 March, 1.30 pm
‘I Believe in Contemporary Art’ Symposium
Lectures by Adrienne Dengerink Chaplin (‘Art, Passion, Justice: Socially Engaged Art and the Church’) and Alastair Gordon (‘Signs of Faith in Contemporary Art’). We will visit several stations together. In the afternoon there will be two rounds of workshops. Language: English and Dutch; translation provided where necessary. || Doopsgezinde Singelkerk, Saturday 23 March, 10.30 am – 4.30 pm
Lieke Wijnia, The Holy between Art and Religion
About the question how the holy can manifest itself through art, focusing on various artworks from Art Stations. In Dutch. This lecture takes place in cooperation with the Van der Leeuwstichting. || Museum Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder, Saturday 6 April, 3 pm
Anikó Ouweneel, The Secret of a Successful Exhibition
About the process of the making of Art Stations: challenges, special moments and some of the artworks. In Dutch. || Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk, Friday 12 April, 1.30 pm
Wessel Stoker, The Veil of St Veronica: A Contemporary Rendering Seen in the Light of the Old St Veronica Tradition
The installation Water no longer dances with light by Güler Ates in perspective. In Dutch. || Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk, Monday 15 April, 5.30 pm
Frits de Lange, The Stations of the Cross as Mini-Pilgrimage
The stations of the cross and the renewed interest in pilgrimages, features of the pilgrimage, and the pilgrimage as a metaphor for our lives. In Dutch. || Keizersgrachtkerk, Tuesday 16 April, 5.30 pm
text: Klaas Holwerda