We, the undersigned resident artists, alumni and staff at Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Against widespread media bias, tactical propaganda campaigns and a concerted effort by state governments to dehumanise Palestinian people and delegitimise their right to exist, we feel this is not a moment to stay silent, complacent or complicit. We reject the censorship of anyone speaking out against the violence being carried out against the Palestinian people. We understand the need to speak up in this moment where such censorship feels rampant and pervasive—not least in the cultural field, where many of our art worker colleagues are actively ostracized, belittled and penalized by those in positions of power, for proclaiming their solidarity with the oppressed.
Susanne Khalil Yusef makes immersive colourful installations by combining a wide range of media such as ceramics, textiles, and sculpture. At first glance, Yusef’s brightly coloured work seems light-hearted and playful, but if you look closer it refers to distress and dangerous situations. She raises critical questions about themes such as homeland and displacement, identity and socio-geographic power relations. The stories in her work are closely related to her own biography, such as the conflicts in her home country, Palestine.
Yusef’s work has been included in the collections of the Museum Arnhem, the Dutch Textile Museum in Tilburg, and the Province of Gelderland.