Archives: Activiteiten

Guided tour through Je est un autre – Ernest Mancoba & Sonja Ferlov Mancoba by guest curator Winnie Sze

These tours will be in English

Time: 2 p.m. – 2.45 p.m., with afterwards some extra room for audience questions
Price: free (excluding museum entrance)
Reservations: the number of participants is limited to 20 people per tour. Make your reservation for Friday 27 January here or for Saturday 28 January here.
Instructions for reservation: first select the type of museum ticket during the time slot of your choice (before 2 p.m.). Next you select ‘Tour Winnie Sze’ and follow the further steps. *

During this first weekend of the anniversary program Cobra 75, we organize two exclusive guided tours by guest curator Winnie Sze. She will guide the audience through the exhibition Je est un autre – Ernest Mancoba & Sonja Ferlov Mancoba that she curated for the Cobra Museum.

The tour will go further into the lives and works of the artist couple Sonja Ferlov Mancoba (1911-1984, Copenhagen-Paris) and Ernest Mancoba (1904-2002, Johannesburg-Paris). Both could be considered ‘insiders’ and ‘outsiders’ of the Cobra art movement.  Like some of the other Cobra artists, Ernest Mancoba became inspired by Nordic prehistoric art. Together with his engagement with African sculptures, European modernism, and arts of other cultures, he came to develop an artistic language that Ejler Bille described as “combin[ing] an African feeling with a living Western culture”.

Sonja Ferlov Mancoba explored both the intuitive and the rational in art, the two sides of the artistic argument that tore the Danish avant-garde apart. Her search for a dialectic between seeming opposites was to become a crucial element in her work, including in her late sculptures that recognised the tension between the individual and humankind.

Sonja’s and Ernest’s relationship, of a white woman and a black man, was rare, and Sonja Ferlov Mancoba also stood out as a woman in a male-dominated art movement. Whilst identity politics were addressed and discussed differently in their time than ours, how might considering their art help us today?

Winnie Sze is based in Cape Town as an independent curator. During her fellowship at the Van Abbemuseum, she researched Ernest Mancoba’s relationship with the Cobra artists. Sze has a deep interest in a broader approach to visual art and focuses on socially-oriented, creative collaborations. She studied art history at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver) and previously operated a contemporary art project venue in London.

* Questions about ticket sales and reservations? You can always call us from Monday till Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on 020 547 50 37.

Film screening of three episodes from the documentary series Afripedia in a collaboration with Cinema Amstelveen

Time: 15.30h
Location: Cinema Amstelveen (Stadsplein 110)
Language: English
Combo tickets: together with Cinema Amstelveen we offer a cheaper combo ticket for a visit to Cosmogony at the Cobra Museum and Afripedia at Cinema Amstelveen. An overview of the different prices can be found here.
Tickets: combo tickets and movie tickets are available through the website of Cinema Amstelveen

Afripedia is a documentary series on the rise of a new generation of African artists, created by the Swedish Afro-collective Stocktown. Each episode focuses on a group of young artists in a different African country. Just like in the exhibition Cosmogony, Afripedia celebrates the creativity of the African continent. On November 25 a selection of three episodes of the Afripedia series (84 mins in total) will be shown, taking the audience to Ghana, Senegal (& Gambia) and Angola, three hotspots of cultural production in West-Africa. Meet the outspoken musicians and street artists (including BMX stunters) in Ghana, the revolutionary designers, photographers and dancers of Senegal and see the kuduro revolution in Angola!

Before the start of the screening, Cobra Museum director Stefan van Raay will give a short introduction to the film, the exhibition Cosmogony, Zinsou an African art collection and how they are connected.

Ghana (2016)
Whether facing environmental issues head-on or inspiring people to reach for the power within themselves, art and music in Ghana are used as catalysts to move people to action and to show the world what it means to be African.

Senegal/Ivory Coast (2016)
Social media has given one Senegalese photographer the opportunity to launch his professional career. When his parents and family were unable to understand his passion for photography, a Facebook community urged him to pursue his dreams.

Angola (2016)
Angola is a land of startling contrasts, presenting in one nation the best and worst parts of Africa. Despite the chaotic conditions, Angola’s musicians see the potential inherent in their country and strive to lead its people to a brighter future.

For this screening we work together with Africadelic. Africadelic is a non-profit organization that is committed to promoting (awareness about) cultural creativity and diversity in and out of Africa and the African diaspora. The Africadelic Festival is an annual festival on and around International Africa Day on 25 May. Through concerts, films and talks, the festival offers a reflection on the state of Africa and a celebration of the cultural creativity of the continent and the diaspora.

Backgrounds and music with cafe exhibition

Sunday October 23
15.00-16.00 hrs
Location: Cobra Cafe
Free entrance
This event is in English
For entrance to the rest of the Cobra Museum, regular entrance fees apply

Together with Dzherelo, the Ukrainian School in Amstelveen, the Cobra Museum for Modern Art organizes a Sunday afternoon event on the 23rd of October, centred around the exhibition Visions from Ukraine, that’s on display at the cafe of the museum. The exhibition shows posters of the Ukrainian collective Pictoric; a group of artists ranging from graphic designers to famous children’s books illustrators. The artists comment on the situation in their country through their illustrations, but they also aim to show the pride, strength and hope of the Ukrainian people with their work. On the 23rd of October the audience can find out more about the posters and the artists, but also about the The Ukrainian School of Amsterdam and its people. There will be a music performance and an opportunity for conversation and asking questions.

Ukrainian School & The Cobra Museum
The Cobra Museum and the Ukrainian School Dzherelo join together to present an exhibition in Amstelveen that reflects the current situation in Ukraine as perceived by the Ukrainians themselves. The Ukrainian School Dzherelo (Source), recently relocated to a bigger building at the Doctor Schaepmanlaan, has been a meeting place for the Ukrainian community in Amstelveen, Amsterdam and the region for years. Every Sunday children learn about the Ukrainian language and culture at the school. Art also forms a considerable part of the curriculum. Some of the study books the children use, were illustrated by the same artists of whom the posters are on display at the Cobra Café. Since the beginning of the war and the arrival of Ukrainian refugees to the Netherlands, the importance of Dzherelo has only increased.

Pictoric
The posters of the Ukrainian illustrator collective Pictoric were already on display in different places in the world; in New York, Ottawa, Paris, Florence and Utrecht, in places like museums, libraries or on the streets. Some illustrators from the collective still work from Ukraine, but some of them had to flee their country and now work from different places. From the establishment in 2014 the illustrators from Pictoric find their inspiration in the contemporary Ukrainian culture and daily life. The collective already took part in various national and international projects.

From 19.00h till 9.00h
Price: € 20,00 per ticket*
Age: 4+
*Min. 2 tickets (child plus adult), max. 4 tickets (3 children plus adult) 

Sign up here!

Would you like to spend a night in a museum? Sleeping between the artworks together with 80 other visitors? Who would not want that! It is possible again during Camping Cobra in the night of 22 to 23 October. Then the Cobra Museum stays open all night for children and their (grand)parents. We sleep in the exhibition Corneille 100 and you bring your own mattress, sleeping bag and flashlight and find a place. Perhaps you want to lie in the middle of the room. Or just underneath your favorite painting!  In the evening there are all kinds of fun activities: there is a film, there are workshops and we play games like Werewolf and Twister. And then we go to sleep, between the art. The next morning there is a communal breakfast. 

Oh yes, especially for this evening we will remove the toilet paper from the toilets, so bring your own roll! 

Adults are welcome when accompanied by at least 1 child and a maximum of 3. Entry is between 19:00 and 20:00. Breakfast is between 08:00 and 09:00. There is no shower at our campsite! 

Bring your own:
Sleeping mat or air mattress
Sleeping bag and pillow
Pyjamas and slippers
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Cuddly bear
Flashlight 
WC roll 

NB. Third party insurance for both parent and child is a prerequisite for participation. By participating you automatically give permission to be photographed. If you do not appreciate this, please report this to one of the staff members on the evening itself.  

DutchCulture and The Cobra Museum for Modern Art present The Other Story of a Dutch and Moroccan new generation.  

This programme is sold out

From 15.30h
Location: Cobra Museum for Modern Art, Sandbergplein 1 Amstelveen
Admission free (excluding museum admission)*

*Please note that visitors under 30 years of age who wish to participate for this program through DutchCulture (click here), the surcharge of €3,50 for the exhibition does not apply.

What changes and challenges in society today do inspire young artists from Morocco and The Netherlands to create their art? How do they deal with tradition and their often international identity? A New Generation of Dutch and Moroccan artists and cultural professionals will shine their light on the themes reflected in Cobra’s exhibition The Other Story. Moroccan Modernism from 1956 until now; an exhibition in which artworks of 50 Moroccan artists are brought together. The works were selected by guest curator Abdelkader Benali.  

Part I open to everyone 

15.15 – 15.30h: walk-in 

15.30 – 16.30h: Abdelkader Benali in conversation with a new generation of Moroccan and Dutch artists  

16.30 – 17.15h: Visit to the exhibition  

Part II open to artists and professionals from the cultural field 

17.15 – 18.00h: DutchCulture meet-up on cultural practices in The Netherlands and Morocco and their exchange

18.00 – 19.00h: Drinks  

The programme consists of two parts, of which the first part is open to everyone. The second part is specifically targeted on artists and cultural professionals.  

Part I
The first part offers an opportunity for everyone to get an introduction to young artists and cultural professionals from both Morocco and The Netherlands and to learn more about their work. Writer, art collector and curator of The Other Story Abdelkader Benali shares some of his experiences curating the exhibition and introduces four NewGen artists from both The Netherlands and Morocco. Together with young artists Mohammed Amine El Bellaoui, Sarah Amrani, Chama Tahiri and Salim Bayri, Benali explores how their practice relates to the work and ideas of their predecessors. How do they deal with tradition on the one hand and societal changes on the other? What does their cultural background mean to them?  

After Part I there is an opportunity to visit the exhibition The Other Story, together with Abdelkader Benali. 

Part II
During the second part, we discuss professional and personal experiences with the four young artists and Abdelkader Benali. What are the similarities and differences in working as a young artist in Morocco and the Netherlands? What do Moroccan culture and tradition mean to artists and cultural professionals? When do memories turn into nostalgia? And is your identity geographically or culturally defined?  

*For people under 30 years old who register for this program through Dutch Culture, don’t have to pay the museum surcharge of € 3.50. They reserve for the program and they need to buy their museum ticket (ex surcharge) o at the desk of the Cobra Museum. 

About the artists 
Rebel Spirit (the artist name of Mohammed Amine El Bellaoui) is a street artist, comic book author, illustrator and musician from Casablanca. He is passionate about urban art and underground culture and is one of Morocco’s youngest authors of comics books. His comic books about everyday life in Casablanca, ”Guide of Casablanca” and ”From Casablanca with love” show humoristic scenes from the lives of the city’s 8 million inhabitants. The stories were written in Darija, Moroccan Arabic language, and make use of typically Moroccan signs and symbolism. Since a young age, Rebel Spirit also practices street art, making use of experimental techniques. 

Salim Bayri is an artist based in Amsterdam. This year he received the Charlotte Köhler Prize for young talent. The Prins Bernard Cultuurfonds, the organization behind the prize, wrote: “Salim Bayri sees himself as ‘ambiguous in between’ the cultures of Morocco and The Netherlands. He has a very sensitive radar for political and social situations, which he addresses in a playful, original and versatile way in various media, from drawings, sculptures, films, music, ‘wearables’ performances and text. There is a sense of humour in his work, but he also doesn’t shy away from the darker edges of our existence.” 

Salim Bayri & Rebel Spirit

Chama Tahiri Ivorra was born and raised in Casablanca where she co-founded and ran the first agency dedicated to cultural engineering from 2012 to 2019. Chama is now a freelance creative director and journalist. She also produces music-related events such as Flemish-Egyptian artist Tamino’s first show in Morocco, promotes artists, and creates content to tell another story of the emerging Arab and African scene, namely through acclaimed publications such as Diptyk Magazine. In 2021 she opened the first cultural vegan café in Casablanca where she hosts music, literature, arts and movies related events and workshops, gathering a community of artists and aficionados in her safe and inclusive alternative space. 

 Sarah Amrani is a visual artist using photography, film and found footage. Three of her photographic works are part of the exhibition The Other Story. In these photos she investigates her relationship towards her female cultural identity and mixed cultural background. This work is part of a series which originated from a fascination for the traditional Moroccan wedding. “Although being familiar with the Moroccan/ Islamic culture and traditions I feel like an observer most of the time. This feeling of being ‘in-between’ two cultures, two identities, is a recurring theme in an ongoing series of work.” 

Chama Tahiri Ivorra & Sarah Amrani

About NewGen
With NewGen, DutchCulture reaches out to the new generation of young artists, creatives and other professionals under 30 years old with the skills and ambitions to break down barriers and share their stories internationally. The meetups we organise are an opportunity for mutual inspiration and knowledge sharing. In addition to our meetups, we also publish online articles about remarkable developments among young emerging artists in the Netherlands and abroad. 

About The Other Story. Moroccan Modernism 1956-now
For the first time in the Netherlands, artworks of 50 Moroccan artists are brought together in one exhibition, titled The Other Story. Together the works provide an overview of the development of Moroccan modern art, starting from the country’s independence in 1956 to the present day. From 1956 a renewed self-awareness among Moroccan artists arose. By now, a new young and exciting generation has taken its place on the international stage.  

18-22 July 2022 – 10.00-17.00 hours
Price: € 275 per person (including materials, coffee/tea and entrance to the museum; excluding sketchbook and stationery)
TICKETS  – please note: instructions for ticket sales can be found at the bottom of this page.
Limited number of tickets available.
This event is in Dutch and English.

Participants will receive the schedule and practical information one week before the event.

Sixth edition of Jonas Ohlsson’s Summerschool @ Cobra Museum

Special guest lecturer: Wafae Ahalouch

Four and a half days of drawing and party presentation with DJ Ike

Take a journey through your own creativity together with artist Jonas Ohlsson! Discover the intuitive power of the image and go in search of their own creative instinct. This edition focuses on the role of logic: good art needs logic as well as intuition, how do they go together? Guest lecturer and artist Wafae Ahalouch will give an introduction to her work Soul Solitude that she made especially for the exhibition The other story. Modern Maro Wafae Ahalouch will give an insight into her own way of working: how do you tell a story in a visual work and bring inspiration, thinking and doing together in a collage?

Soft Spirituality

‘Following my work Soul Solitude featured in the exhibition The Other Story, I want to give participants an insight into my way of working. How can you tell a story in a visual work by letting your inspiration, thinking and doing come together in a collage. Playing with shapes, colors and narratives and putting them together is a way to engage in a creative process.

I want to see if we can make abstraction and figuration, symbolism and spirituality connect. By choosing an extra dimension from a composition of basic geometric shapes, elements of earlier drawings get another layer of meaning. Abstracting by possibly enlarging visual elements from the drawings made can lead to surprising new narratives.’

Free Admission to the exhibition Humanity’s End as a New Beginning

Sunday 19 June – 10.00-17.00
Admission free (museum admission not included)

Atelier Cobra

Sunday 19 June – 11.00-14.00 hrs.
Admission free (museum admission not included)

On Sunday 19 June, the Japan Festival with the theme ‘Reconnect for Tomorrow’ will be held in the Amstelveen city centre. As part of this event, the Cobra Museum will also be in a Japanese mood that day with free activities. For example, on the last day of the exhibition ‘Humanity’s End as a New Beginning‘, the works of Japanese-American visual artist Yuriko Yamaguchi can be viewed entirely free of charge while enjoying Japanese snacks. Visitors can also participate free of charge in a walk-in workshop, where there is plenty of opportunity to make their own Japanese art.

In the Voordrachtszaal of the Cobra Museum, thirty watercolours by Japanese-American artist Yuriko Fujita Yamaguchi will be on display, painted in response to a special collection of myths from all over the world. These old stories, brought together by the Amstelveen Emeritus Professor Mineke Schipper, each give their vision of what the end of the world could look like, but also of how it could lead to a new beginning. On 19 June, the last day of the exhibition, Yamaguchi’s remarkable works are freely accessible.

The exhibition ‘Humanity’s End as a New Beginning‘ is free to visit on 19 June. The other exhibitions in the Cobra Museum can also be visited on this day, but the museum’s regular entrance fee has to be paid.

The studio in the Cobra Museum is, as always, freely accessible on Sundays from 11.00 to 14.00. This time, however, the artistic assignment has a Japanese flavour: participants are invited to use Japanese brushes and ecoline to depict their own view of the end of the world as a new beginning. First, take a tour of Yamaguchi’s inspiring works of art and then get to work yourself under the guidance of the museum’s creative staff.

Host: Abdelkader Benali

Sunday May 15, 11.00-11.45 hrs – Exhibition space
This lecture will be in English
Free participation (excluding museum entrance fee)
You can book your free ticket HERE. 

As part of The Other Story the Cobra Museum is now showing around 300 urns, alongside other work by André Elbaz. We are very proud to announce that Elbaz will be giving an Artist lecture in which he will speak about his work and the creation of The Urns, followed by an interview between guest curator Abdelkader Benali and Elbaz.

André Elbaz started painting at the age of 21 and became a professor at the School of Fine Arts (École des Beaux-Arts) in Casablanca in the 1960s. In his work he often deals with historical traumas, from the Holocaust to the genocide in Rwanda. Destruction and re-creation go hand in hand in his work, as is shown in The Urns.

At the lecture André Elbaz will be accompanied by his son Elie Elbaz. At the end, the audience will get a chance to ask some questions.

Please note: the language of this workshop day will be Japanese. Open for all Japanese speaking adults and their children from the age of 4.

Location: Cobra Museum, Nemo Sabo and SABK.
Costs: € 5,- excluding entrance fee to the museum and lunch

Do you like painting and would you like to work and meet with the Japanese- American artist Yuriko Yamaguchi? The Cobra Museum, Jacop and SAKB organize a workshop together where you will get the chance to paint with Yuriko Yamaguchi, learn more about her work and show your own painting in a very special exhibition at SABK. The workshop was created especially for the Japanese community of Amstelveen. The spoken language is Japanese and the workshop is open to adults and their children from 4 years onwards.

In the exhibition Humanity’s End as a New Beginning Yuriko Yamaguchi shows thirty of her water colour paintings at the Cobra Museum. Her inspiration for these artworks came from thirty myths that were collected by the Amstelveen-based emeritus professor Mineke Schipper. These old stories tell us about what would happen if our world, and we as humans, would disappear and come to an end. Story tellers and artists have been fascinated with this subject for ages. And what if this end would be the beginning of a whole new world, what would that look like? Yuriko Yamaguchi is concerned about climate change and pollution and the way we handle the earth. Her work is also a call for taking good care of our world.

More information about the exhibition by Yuriko Yamaguchi you can find here.

Yuriko Yamaguchi (Japan, 1948) is a painter and sculptor. Her work is exhibited in various museums and galleries in the US, Japan and Europe. She has also been commissioned to make works for public spaces, for example at Washington Dulles Airport. The special collaboration between Yamaguchi and Schipper already led to an exhibition in Japan in 2018. The work was also shown in the US and in the Dutch city of Leiden.

Schedule workshop, lunch and exhibition

10:00 am – 10:30 am: walk-in
10:30 am – 12:30 pm: workshop at the Cobra Museum. Yuriko Yamaguchi tells the audience more about her work and her paintings. Under her guidance participants will create their own painting.
12:30 pm: we go to Nemo Sabo
1:00 pm – 2:30 pm: lunch at Nemo Sabo with the workshop participants and Yuriko Yamaguchi.
2:30 pm: opening of the exhibition of the works made by the workshop participants at SABK. The opening will be performed by Yuriko Yamaguchi.
2:15 pm – 4:00 pm: option to have a look at all the works of your fellow workshop participants and enjoy a drink.

If you like your painting can remain in the exhibition until the end of the month, so more people will get a chance to see your work.

Costs: € 5,- per participant for the workshop plus a museum ticket (regular prices € 15,- for adults /€ 9,50 for children, see this page for an overview of discount options). Lunch at Nemo Sabo at own costs.

BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE

Instructions for booking:
1. Choose the date: 25 March
2. Select the time: 10:00 am
3. Select your ticket type(s) for museum entrance
4. Select the workshop time: 10:30 am
5. Follow the further instructions

One more time there is the opportunity to browse through Constant’s household treasures.

Nothing makes you realise that there used to be a time when objects were produced to last a lifetime then when cleaning out the house of someone born in 1920. Most objects found their way to our archive, storage or the auction house but there is a selection of objects that do not fit in either of these categories. In the right home, with the right owner they can flourish once again. From artist materials, crockery to an old record player.

Whether you foster a love for all things previously loved or you are just looking for some quality tools we would like to invite you once more in the weekend of 18-19 December at the Cobra Museum. All proceeds will go to the Constant 101 project.

NB: Normal entrance fee applies and due to current Covid-regulations reserving a timeslot is mandatory!