Artist Residency
January 2025
Creating small stories
at Villa Buitenlust
Ik wil voor heel even,
stil leven.
Let me live in stillness, just for a little.
In January 2025 I stayed at Villa Buitenlust in Amsterdam west as an artist-in-residence. For two weeks I talked to other guests, visitors and volunteers about all sorts of things, and documented whatever I could. I took notes of our conversations and thoughts I had afterwards. In these weeks I encountered so many people, and all of them shared: a strength, and persistence in the tough things life dealt them. I aim to honour that in the drawings and little stories collected here.
“L.” A collected story.
Translation of the Dutch:
L.'s story. She had wanted to bring her daughter, but her ex planned an activity for her after school. L. would have to pick her up, bring her to the villa, quickly organize a dinner for them, and then get her daughter back to her ex on time. Impossible; and you just don't want to do that to a kid.
Do you have one child? I ask. She grins.
I have four children! She says proudly. Almost eighteen, fifteen, eleven, and nine. They're all living with her ex at the moment, since L. has been homeless for a year and a half.
Yesterday she officially closed her business registry. She was also recommended to apply for monthly benefits. She hasn't been able to work for months because of the depression. After closing business, she applied to train as a security guard.
The GGD should help her find a house but they haven't yet. She's applied to them five times now. They think she is self-sufficient enough to figure something out. Pay for a whole house by myself? Now, in the Netherlands? She says. Even if you work full-time, most people can't afford that.
Won't her ex help, so the kids can also be with their mom? She shrugs. He wants to sabotage things so she'll have to go back to him. She requested a restraining order. Contact about the kids is all per email. The last two kids are miracles, by the way.
After her second, she developed cervical cancer. Pain so bad she couldn't walk. At home, tests were inconclusive, but in Turkey as soon as she saw a doctor he said, you're coming back tomorrow and we're operating. She shows me her scars: two small cuts, halfway between her navel and hips. They did it with a robot; she says, amazing. They said I wouldn't have another baby after that. But I did.
She went in for daily checks. Doctors thought the fetus wouldn't make it. But the child was born safely. After that birth she was on contraceptives, but still became pregnant with the fourth.
Right after she gives birth to that baby, the cancer comes back. This time they remove her uterus and her right breast, pre-emptively. Now it’s filled with sillicone. It looks pretty good, she laughs.
Ik verwerk nog de gesprekken bij Villa Buitenlust. Voor vandaag: een recept voor een salade, die ik te horen kreeg terwijl de beste vent zelf nog aan het kauwen was 🥗
De salade van Koos
(zachte) geitenkaas, appelazijn, olijfolie, 1/3 eetlepel mosterd, granaatappelpitjes, 1 stronkje witlof, 4 steeltjes bleekselderij
Witlof in 4en snijden en dan in stukjes dwars (harde uiteinden eraf!)
Bleekselderij in stukjes en de kaas ook. Alles bij elkaar en klaar!
Er kan eventueel fruit bij: peer, mandrijn of sinaasappel stukjes. Maar dan doe je wel de helft minder granaatappelpitjes.
I’m still processing the conversations at the residency at @villabuitenlust . Today: a recipe for a salad, told to me by the kind fellow as he was still eating 🥗
Koos’ Salad
(soft) goat’s cheese, apple vinegar, olive oil, 1/3 tablespoon of mustard, pomegranate seeds, 1 endive (or chicory), 4 sticks of celery
chop the endive into 4 quarters and then into smaller slices (get rid of the hard ends!)
chop up your celery into bits, as well as the cheese. Mix all your ingredients and presto!
You could choose to add fruit: pear, mandarin or orange, chopped. In that case, add in only half of the original amount of pomegranate seeds.
Baklava met pistache (een cadeau van Mazin)
Deze baklava komt uit Schiedam. De patissier waar Mazin het gekocht heeft, werkt heel schoon. Hij draagt altijd handschoenen en heeft een industriële afzuigkap, zo een die wel 1500,- kost.
Eerst eet je het (grootste deel) met de vork. Daar kun je ook mee snijden. De kleine kruimels zijn makkelijker met de lepel op te scheppen: zo kun je elke laatste kruimel opeten.
