Image-makers and image-breakers

How does the process of decolonization unfold in the living room of the average television watcher, in the established historiography at universities, and in youth literature?

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Information

Date and time Friday 17 January 2020 22:05 tot 22:55 uur
Location Theater aan het Spui - Zaal 1

Decolonize the Mind 3: How does the process of decolonization unfold in the living room of the average television watcher, in the established historiography at universities, and in youth literature?

During the Friday Night Unlimited program, several events will focus on the decolonization of the mind. How free is our mind, what does freedom mean, and are we truly free, or caught in the framework of our culture, society and history? This theme is partly based on the essay collection Decolonizing the Mind by the Kenyan writer Ngugi wa Thiong'o, in which he discusses colonized language and how its influence is still notable. Since he believes that language plays a constructive role in culture, history and identity, he arguest for "linguistic decolonization".

A discussion between documentarian, writer and journalist Sunny Bergman, historian and lecturer at Leiden University Karwan Fatah-Black, and children's book writer and illustrator Mylo Freeman, best known for his Princess Arabella picture book series.

Line-up

Sunny Bergman

(Netherlands, 1972) is a documentarian, director and programmer for the VPRO network as well as a writer, activist and actor. From a young age, she has questioned what is considered normal in terms of lifestyle as well as skin colour, sex and beauty. These themes are reflected in her programs and documentaries. Her much-discussed films include Beperkt Houdbaar (Limited Shelf-Life, 2007) about current beauty ideals, and Sletvrees (Slut Fear, 2013), in which she investigates (female) sexuality and liberation. Her documentary Zwart als roet (Black as Soot, 2014), a critical look at the Dutch tradition of Sinterklaas, also provoked much debate. Her 2019 film Man Made investigates the phenomenon of masculinity -- what is it, in fact, what kind of stereotypes express it, and how do men suffer from such ideas? Bergman studied philosophy and politics in York, England, her mother's country of origin.
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Karwan Fatah-Black

(1981) is an assistant professor at the Institute for History at Leiden University. He received the 2016 Heineken Young Scientists Award for History for his study of formal and informal Dutch transatlantic trade during the Golden Age, especially the slave trade. Slavery, smuggling and illegal trade are important themes in his work. Fatah-Black is regarded as an expert on the history of slavery and engages in public discussions on this subject. For example, he gives public lectures, makes media appearances, and is a quiz master at the Kwaku Festival in Amsterdam’s Bijlmer district and the Keti Koti (Broken Chains) Festival, an annual celebration of the abolition of slavery in Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles.
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Mylo Freeman

(Netherlands) is Dutch-American. After her studies at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, she lived for several years in New York.  She worked for magazines and started creating children's books. In 1998 she won the Kiekebook Prize for Potje!, which also apeared in translation. In the meantime she has produced about 50 picture books and is best known for her 12-part Princess Arabella series, now also a puppet series, an app and a play. It helps fill a much needed niche: picture books with more diversity. Freeman also leads workships, gives readings and appears in musical performances. She is the chair of Stichting3, which aims to stimulate diversity in children's literature via children's book festivals and reading-aloud competitions.
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Simone Zeefuik

is an Afro-Dutch writer, cultural programmer and organiser whose work revolves around everyday life, joy and social justice. She focuses on imagination as access, on (de)spectacularising Blackness and on (digital) archives. Zeefuik is a programmer at the Bijlmer Parktheater in Amsterdam and a lecturer at Zawdie Sandvliet's Afro-Dutch Studies. From 2021 to 2023, she was programme director of the temporary master's programme Blacker Blackness at the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam, which she initiated. Her work focuses on imagination as a method to decolonise, decode and liberate representations of Black people and Blackness in art and design.

Go to the website of Simone Zeefuik
Instagram: @lazeefuik
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Laura Stavinoha

is a vocalist, songwriter, loop artist, vocal coach and producer. As a singer she has sung a variety of genres, from baroque to deep house and from her own pop songs to avant-garde classical. For years she has performed as a classical soprano, in the Netherlands and abroad. Nowadays she strives for an authentic, intuitive use of voice outside the usual traditions. Two EPs of Laura's own work have been released: Sweet Life (2012) and Looping Patterns (2015). As one of the first vocal looping artists in the Netherlands she works with song based live looping: she makes songs by sampling her voice with a loop station.
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