Open call: Digital Dialogues with Marcel Pinas on 11 and 12 May 2021

Voor informatie in het Nederlands: klik hier

During the lockdown, as an extension of our monthly studio visiting program, Stroom organizes the Digital Dialogues, in which artists from The Hague enter an online discussion with an interesting artist, writer or curator. You can now sign up for a Digital Dialogue with visual artist Marcel Pinas.

On Tuesday 11 May and Wednesday 12 May 2021 the visual artist and organizer Marcel Pinas will conduct one-on-one talks via Zoom with artists in The Hague, about their artistic practice. Pinas lives and works in Moengo (Suriname). In addition to his own artistic practice he is the founder of the Kibii Foundation, responsible for a.o. Tembe Art Studio, Contemporary Art Museum Moengo and the Moengo Festival of Visual Arts. For his fields of interest we refer to his artist statement and short biography (scroll down).

Artist statement:
"With his striking colorful paintings and the strong statements of his modern engaged art installations, all addressing his now famous theme of "Kibri a Kulturu", Marcel has made quite an impression in the many countries worldwide where he has traveled and exhibited in the past years. For his art, his exhibitions and his studies and residencies abroad are to Marcel not just a way to further his career as an artist, but they are to him a vehicle; a means to an end; a way to build an artists' platform, with a base large and strong enough to allow him to fulfill his most recent and urgent mission. The mission involves the Surinamese district of Marowijne, which is home to several maroon villages including Pelgrimkondre, the village where Marcel Pinas was born. Despite it's difficult past, characterized by a violent and destructive guerilla war in the 1980s, and the lack of attention from the government for the plight of maroon and indigenous communities, Marcel sees a bright future for the district of Marowijne. The artist strives to make Marowijne the art district of Suriname. He envisions a ‘Marowijne Art Park' with public art installations and objects from local and international artists and a ‘Marowijne Cultural Center' where the local population will be trained in visual as well as performing arts. The objective of this project, for which Pinas is already laying the groundwork in Marowijne, is to attract tourism to the area, create employment opportunities and increase pride and appreciation of communities for their own cultural heritage. Work by Marcel Pinas, be it two dimensional or three dimensional, intensely colorful or shockingly somber, is always captivating and deeply meaningful. It attests not only of great skill and artistic talent, but also of great determination and dedication to his cause."

You can apply until Monday 3 May 2021
If you are interested in an online conversation about your art and art practice with Marcel Pinas, you can apply until Monday 3 May via de following link: 
https://nl.surveymonkey.com/r/digitaldialogue2021
Please supply a short motivation. All entries will be sent to Marcel along with a few suggestions from Stroom, after which he will make the selection of his choice. You will only receive notice if you have been selected by Marcel for a Digital Dialogue. Please note that due to the time difference, the interviews will take place in the late afternoon.

Short biography
Marcel Pinas was born in 1971, in the district of Marowijne in East-Suriname, in the village Pelgrimkondre. As a teenager he moves to the capital city Paramaribo. His art teacher in school recognizes his talent and convinces him to enroll at the Nola Hatterman Art Institute, from which he graduates in 1990. He studies at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts in Jamaica, is artist in residence at the Vermont Studio Center in the USA, the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam, travels all around the world, but remains forever true to his roots. The theme Kibri A Kulturu (preserve the culture) is his main driving force and source of inspiration.

With his art Marcel Pinas aims to create a lasting record of the lifestyle and traditions of the Maroons and hopes to create a worldwide awareness and appreciation for the unique traditional communities in Suriname and the serious threats they are facing today. He is the founder of the Kibii foundation which includes an art park and cultural center where the youth from his hometown is trained and motivated to build a future based upon the strength of their own culture.
marcelpinas.nl

About the studio visiting program and Digital Dialogues
On a monthly basis Stroom invites curators, artists and critics from The Netherlands and abroad to visit the studios of artists in The Hague. These studio vistis offer an opportunity for artists to present their work and receive contructive feedback on their practice. The program also aims is to strengthen and broaden the artists' network.

Due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus the monthly studio visiting program is temporarily halted, while the need for feedback remains undiminished. Instead of physical studio visits Stroom offers an alternative in the form of the Digital Dialogues program.