Knights in Shining Armour (reappropriating the appropriated)

Wanneer: 11 may 2023 - 1 july 2023

A bold exhibition about reclaiming, self-deprecation as a shield, and art as trauma therapy.
Find all information here about the exhibition, the artists and their works, and the public program. The exhibition ends on July 1.

Please note: Contrary to what is stated in the public program information, there is no special event surrounding the finissage. However, on that day, in connection with Keti Koti, there is the possibility of pre-registration for the special Knights in Shining Armour publication. Those who register on July 1 can collect this special edition—featuring a special introduction by writer Karin Amatmoekrim—free of charge from July 22 (opening of the ZomerSalon Royaal) at CBK Zuidoost.

Read below what appeared in the media about Knights in Shining Armour:

• Het Parool
• ZAM Magazine
• Trouw
• Mister Motley
• Art Dependence
• AT5
• Amsterdam Krant

During Amsterdam Art Week (May 31 – June 4) there was a special program.

Introduction
Is there room in art for a sense of humor, satire, or comedy when it comes to (institutional) racism and oppression? The group exhibition Knights in Shining Armour (reappropriating the appropriated) explores this question with work by seven (inter)national artists, in a setting that gives new meaning to historical objects from our colonial past.

The exhibition is part one of the eponymous artistic and social research project by curator Claudio Ritfeld. For the exhibition, he is collaborating with the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE) in the 2023 memorial year, which celebrates 150 years of the abolition of slavery in Suriname and the Caribbean parts of the Dutch Kingdom.

The artists participating in this exhibition come from various countries, some originating from the transatlantic slave trade, others from West Africa, Europe, and the United States of America. The inspiration for this project came from the historical journey and linguistic transformation of the word “nigger”. The curator attempts to draw a parallel between this phenomenon and the current act of contemporary painters reappropriating Black stereotypes in figurative painting. The curator is interested in how humor can be used as the ultimate “armor” to ward off or even neutralize some of the weapons of racism and oppression.

Public events Knights in Shining Armour

May 11: Opening with conversation and The Gang is Beautiful event.
May 31 – June 4: Amsterdam Art Week: Draw your own royalty (kids workshop with Kenneth Aidoo, Sunday June 4).
June 14: Hmm public event about internet culture with speakers such as Zella Vanié for presentations in pecha kucha style.
June 21: Art Café, artist talk with some of the artists, an academic, and other guest speakers on resilience strategies against racism and anti-Blackness, moderated by Raul Balai.
July 1: Keti Koti + Finissage

Curator’s statement:

The year 2023 is a memorial year in the Netherlands because 150 years ago slavery was abolished in Suriname and the Caribbean parts of the Dutch Kingdom. In this context, CBK Zuidoost has entered into a collaboration with the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands for the creation of the group exhibition Knights in Shining Armour (reappropriating the appropriated). The curator of this exhibition, Claudio Ritfeld, was inspired by the reappropriated definition of the word ‘nigger‘ and the artistic/political intentions of Mark Steven Greenfield; reappropriating to neutralize the effects of racial stereotypes.

Knights in Shining Armour (reappropriating the appropriated) also demonstrates an alternative way of approaching historical objects and intangible remains from our colonial past.

Chin up
Black people thrive, celebrate, and simply exist in their inexhaustible natural appeal, which transcends all European beauty standards. Against all odds, generations of Black Europeans have shown they will not bow, continuing to keep their backs and shoulders straight and their chins up. Often, Black communities in Europe consulted (inter)continental artists, writers, and philosophers, among others, for assistance and support toward a deeper understanding of the ‘self’ for the sake of reappraisal. Hence the composition of the participants in this exhibition, which primarily consists of international artists:
Joseph ‘Joblek’ Adebleku (GH), Kenneth Aidoo (NL), Ikechukwu ‘Amos Black’ Amos (NG), Ade Dare (NG), Giovanni Jona (SR), Madison Lewis (US), Zella Vanié (US/CI).

While the discussion of “is Zwarte Piet racist or not” is slowly gaining ground in the Netherlands, fellow artists are reclaiming Black characterizations as a means of empowerment by cutting the ground from under the oppressor’s feet.

Humor
The hypothesis and rhetoric suggested by this exhibition are crystal clear; is there room for humor, satire, or comedy in the context of (institutional) racism and the monumental instruments of oppression? Although Ritfeld presents this research question as a rhetorical one, many would argue that there is no room for such an approach when dealing with these weighty subjects. What happens if we rephrase the question by adding “in art”; is there room for humor, satire, or comedy in the context of (institutional) racism and the monumental instruments of oppression in art?

A magical playing field unfolds when it comes to contemporary art in relation to historical facts and objects. An even more mystical force is involved when we use laughter as a remedy for otherwise incurable “diseases.”

Transformation
In addition to Greenfield’s theory, Knights in Shining Armour (reappropriating the appropriated) is also deeply inspired by the historical journey and linguistic transformation of the word ‘nigger’. The curator attempts to establish a parallel connection between this phenomenon and the act of contemporary artists reappropriating Black stereotypes in figurative painting. In this regard, the curator is interested in how humor can function as the ultimate “armor” that wards off or even neutralizes the weapons of racism and oppression.

“In terms of linguistic theory, reappropriation can be seen as a specific case of a type of semantic change, namely amelioration—a process by which the meaning of a word becomes more positive over time.” – artandpopularculture.com

There are many different stages and forms in the process of emancipation. The wounds of our colonial past are felt more by some than others, and along the way, Black culture and Black identity have shown us their resilience using various strategies.

EMDR therapy
This exhibition introduces a new strategy by making referential use of psychotherapeutic methodology, one that is employed by Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapists. Here, it applies to the viewer’s gaze, looking at figurative paintings that accentuate or even extremely exaggerate facial features and dark skin tones. EMDR is a therapeutic treatment method primarily used for people with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Essential to this exhibition is the load on the ‘working memory’. While visitors stare at the paintings, the portrayed characters may remind them of a traumatic racist experience. This load on the working memory is achieved through, among other things, shifting focal points. As the viewer walks from painting to painting and from heritage object to heritage object, the immersive installation plays the actual percussive score of a modified EMDR therapy session. This treatment method is often used to restart the stalled processing of traumatic experiences, such as a veteran in need of psychotherapy after returning home from extremely violent combat.

---