25.11 – 19.12.21
Assembly – Gardens of Fez
Bureau Postjesweg AmsterdamFilm installation and program derived from the long term research and film Gardens of Fez (Morocco) by Heidi Vogels, with contributions by Mariska van den Berg, Francesca Masoero, Farida Benlyazid, Erik Hagoort
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Assembly – Gardens of Fez brings together elements of the documentary Gardens of Fez (2025). A research about the disappearing gardens of the largest and best preserved medina of the Arab world, as seen through the lens of its residents. Their memories and stories give access to a less visible part of the city which illustrates how imagination intertwines with our perception of daily reality. This investigation continued in the neighbourhoods of Amsterdam Nieuw-West, through a program of film evenings, exchanges with local community groups and presentations.
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1 Dec 2021 | film & talk | The Wind Will Carry Us | Abbas Kiarostami
Selected and introduced by curator and publicist Mariska van den Berg
Three men travel to a remote, traditional Iranian village in a mountainous border region. Though they discuss treasure hunting, what exactly they seek remains unclear. Before leaving empty-handed, one of them quickly takes photos of the village’s women, which is forbidden. The film incisively reflects upon the relationship between the residents and the ‘outsiders’, between what is known and visible and what remains invisible and sometimes necessarily unspoken.
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17 Dec 2021 | Talk | Collections of Nieuw-West | New Metropolis
With Heidi Vogels, Erik Hagoort, and Art Summer School participants Pernille Lonstrup, Peter Both, Amal Al Sidi, Jana Zijp, Dorota Dabrowska
A public conversation aired online in which we looked back on the Art Summer School that took place earlier that year. We discussed how stories and experiences influence our daily life, our perception of the city, and how this affects our understanding of place.
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18 Dec 2021 | Film & talk | Une Porte sur le Ciel (A Door to the Sky) | Farida Benylazid
Selected and introduced (online) by curator Francesca Masoero and filmmaker Farida Benylazid
Une Porte Sur le Ciel is a story of newfound faith, rediscovered roots, and feminist liberation and solidarity. The film offers an intimate, poetic, and political account of violent fractures – visible and otherwise – that crisscross contemporary Morocco. The story revolves around the family home: a traditional Riad, in the Medina of Fez, with an old and dilapidated garden that needs clearing. Slowly, however, it turns into a ‘women’s zawiya,’ functioning as a refuge for the needy and a place for love and collective care.
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Credits
Assembly – Gardens of Fez film installation
Rajae Drissi, El Hadri, Camelia Hakim and Rachid Haloui (VO), Benito Strangio (camera), Stella van Voorst van Beest (montage), Boban Bajic (sound), near by film (co-production).
Assembly – Gardens of Fez publication
Heidi Vogels (text), Mariska van den Berg (editing), Salma Barmani (text and translation), Joey Kops (design).
Images
G.J. van Rooij, Thomas Lenden, Heidi Vogels
With special thanks to Bureau Postjesweg, Heutink group, Mondriaan Fonds, AFK, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, Stichting Stokroos, VSB fonds, MTS.
