The walls of the Amsterdam Museum and the Frans Hals Museum will soon no longer be dominated by portraits of rich white men, but by self-portraits of North Hollanders. In Aalsmeer, residents painted their own faces this weekend, and those portraits will soon be exhibited as works of art in museums.
On the table are the brushes, paint and mirrors that visitors use Art route in Aalsmeer painting a self-portrait. The first paintings can be admired next to the table. These are sewn together into a joint work of art.
From students to the elderly
“We visited retirement homes, but students and disabled people also painted beautiful canvases,” says Jan Daalman of the Art Team in Aalsmeer, which is the project ‘Faces of Aalsmeer’ – part of ‘Faces of North Holland‘ – leads.
Text continues below the photo of the provisional canvas, which was on display in the garden at Uiterweg 185 in Aalsmeer during the Art Route.
In addition to painting, participants are instructed to write a sentence on the back of the linen canvas that begins with the words ‘I am’. “They often find that even more difficult than drawing.”
The previously made self-portraits contain texts such as “I have lost my way”, “I am afraid of everything, of everyone” and “I am someone who enjoys life”. “The texts are just as diverse as the paintings,” says Jan.
Text continues below the photo of the back of the artwork.
One of today’s participants is Tamara Kerkstra (56). “I am a peanut,” she writes proudly on the back of her artwork, because of her Indonesian heritage. “And I am peanut butter,” says her daughter Shannon Kerkstra (29) laughing, referring to her Indonesian and Dutch background.
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The aim of this project is to ensure more diversity in museums. “Paintings from the past mainly show rich, powerful, white men,” Jan explains. “Only they were rich enough to have a painting done.”
“There are paintings of women,” notes participant Neeltje Peters (72). “But much more from men.” Yet the participants also see a change: “I see much more diversity in the current art world,” says Tamara.
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170 people have already painted a self-portrait, but the aim is to collect three hundred self-portraits from Aalsmeer and the surrounding area. After this weekend new workshops will be organized again. It is still unclear when these will take place.
The paintings of Faces of North Holland can be seen in the Amsterdam Museum from July 27 to November 11, 2024 and in the Frans Hals Museum from April 3 to August 17, 2025.