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Folia has FOMO | Eye to eye with the living dead
No plans for next weekend yet? Trouble choosing between all the options in Amsterdam? Then check out our biweekly cultural column Folia has FOMO, with cultural tips from the editors between September 27 and October 11. From the faces of mummies at the Allard Pierson to the Feast of Tabernacles.
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Eye to eye. The people behind mummy portraits | Allard Pierson Museum | 6 October 2023 to 25 February 2024 | 10,-.
Eye to eye with the dead. No fewer than 38 mummy portraits will stare at visitors to the Allard Pierson in the coming months. With large, dreamy eyes, the figures look at you 'so that they keep sight of the realm of the living,' says Allard Pierson curator Ben van den Bercken.
'We see in these paintings - on panel and textiles - the Egyptian middle class at the time of Roman rule,' Van den Bercken says. A cultural mishmash emerged in the images: women wearing Greek clothing and a Roman hairstyle are depicted in the company of a goddess such as Isis.
From the first to the fourth century AD, paintings of these deceased souls were placed on their mummified bodies. This was done as follows: the deceased Roman Egyptian was first laid out. Soon a painter would come along and give the decomposing face a beautiful, romantic sheen in the warm climate, believes UvA alumnus Van den Bercken.
The international 'Face to Face' project enabled these fragile portraits to travel to the Allard Pierson from renowned museums such as the Louvre and Getty. Using the latest equipment from the Rijksmuseum and TU Delft, UvA researchers here traced the creation of the paintings, organizer Van den Bercken proudly explains. A painted old man appeared from the manner of painting to have suffered from an eye disorder for many years, and the red eye of a fit lad seemed to indicate his destructive career as a boxer.
Among other contemporary images, the museum also tries to make visitors think for themselves, curator Van den Bercken emphasizes. If a viewer two thousand years from now comes face to face with your video on Tiktok, Instagramstory or lost Polaroid, what life will he see? When you are dead, how will you be face to face with the living?
The Big Amsterdam Quiz | Various locations | October 1 to 15 | Free
Hey bijgoochem, are you a real Amsterdammer? Show that you can tell the Noorderkerk from the Westerkerk and the Westerstraat from the Westermarkt. With a pickle in Eetcafé Oerknal or with an oat milk latte in Crea; all over Mokum, quizzes on Jordanian, Jordaan rebellion and Johnny Jordaan will take place in early October. The daredevil who reaches the finals will appear live with his face on AT5. The mazzel!
Jewish Feast of Tabernacles | Waterlooplein | September 29 - October 6, 2023 | Free
Thanks to a collaboration between the UvA, the Jewish Cultural Quarter and the municipality, the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), is returning to the streets of downtown Amsterdam. Three modern leaf huts will be on display on Waterlooplein, a revival of a centuries-old tradition that symbolizes vulnerability, protection and coming together. There will be historical readings and stories about the religious aspect of the celebration. The initiative is part of the project "The Jewish City," about which Folia previously spoke to Professor of Jewish Studies Bart Wallet, and aims to make Amsterdam's rich Jewish history visible to a wide audience.
Julius Caesar, I came, I saw and went down | H'ART Museum | 16 September 2023 - 20 May 2024 | For students: 15,-
For this very first exhibition of the H'ART museum (former Hermitage), after its redecoration and name change, H'ART immediately went big: nearly 150 historical artifacts unravel the myths surrounding Julius Caesar, one of the most influential figures in (Roman) history. Discover who he really was, his significance in today's world and his influence on art and culture through the ages. A must-visit for history and culture lovers!
Diversity and academic freedom | SPUI25 | 3 October 20:00 | Free
Academic freedom is under pressure, the Stolker Committee concluded after a whistleblower report. Also at the UvA. One of the recommendations from the final report was therefore: discuss this within the university. This evening in SPUI25, organized by UvA's central diversity officer, promises to follow this up. The perfect opportunity for students, together with an informed UvA panel and rector Peter-Paul Verbeek, to reflect on the crucial balance between freedom and responsibility within the academic community, and to voice any concerns.
Blue Monday Cafe | The Roode Bioscoop | October 2, 7 p.m. | 10.-.
The rain is pounding, pages of scripted books are waiting, work groups feel like workdays and self-pity is your only coping mechanism. It's monday. Even The Red Cinema knows that. Its red porch, among its peeling red paint, can make you feel shamelessly "blue" on your blue monday. Musician William Barrett performs those "blues" on his double bass. Deep tones as you sink deep into depressed depths. But when you wake up tearful, it's almost weekend again!
