A visit to old leather factory in Oisterwijk (NL) May 8, 2014, combined with a view of paintings by WOLS in Museo Sofia Reina in the same year, Madrid (E) made me create assemblage.
old leather factory in Oisterwijk
With group of 12 photographers, we were allowed to search for good places to photograph.
One Way Out
One way out
“So, there is only one way out. // But there are no stairs. // There is no rope, no trampoline. // You have no wings even. // Knowing that the heat will become intolerable / how do you get out?!”
Concrete benches for machinesCrypt in the “church” named Leather Factory Oisterwijk, NL
Not to be seated
“Here one stands in awe / and one’s mind lingers / about those, who once were sitting on the benches. // But after what happened / the holiness of this sacred site / does not allow anyone to be seated here / anymore.”
Three Trestles under the Hatch
“Three trestles under the hatch: Even, / if the memory / of an empty room / with stone trestles, that once
all photos, texts & art (c) Drager Meurtant, 2014 – 2024
Today, the world looked safer / without sirens, no shooting till 14 hours / and the car moved smoothly
accross the border / separating two countries for long / only in war having been united by force.
One hour later, the friends did meet / first time in almost 4 months.
It took two hours to talk down / the big C that shaped lives / and for leaving the extra coat / worn for safety.
And then they took a dive where it was / forbidden / followed by coffee on / a terrace looking at the river Rhine.
(terras aan de rivier de Rijn)
Vandaag kwam de wereld veiliger over / zonder sirenes, geen schieten tot 14 uur / en de auto bewoog langzaam / langs de grens / die de twee landen lang had gescheiden / alleen verenigd in de oorlog / door macht.
Eén uur later, ontmoetten de vrienden / elkaar voor het eerst in bijna vier maanden. / Het nam twee uur om de grote C / omlaag te praten, die het leven beheerste / en om de extra jas – gedragen voor de veiligheid – achter te laten.
En toen doken ze in het water waar het verboden was / gevolgd door koffie op / een terras dat uitkeek op de rivier de Rijn.
Drager Meurtant, June 24, 2020 (during lift of first Covid19 lockdown, minor corrections Jan 29, 2024)
The line was drawn by / two fingers of a cramped / hand of the writer who wanted / words catched in image, this time / but halfway the paper / had to experience the line let / loose of the tip of the pencil,
and / next
moved freely through space / – that served the scene – / to land in the end / in a dash, or dot / on the ceiling.
Content – where the ink was scraped, there came content (DM, 2021, monoprint)
De lijn werd getrokken door / twee vingers aan de krampachtige / hand van de schrijver die woorden, nu eens / in beeld wilde vatten / maar halfweg het papier / moest ervaren dat de lijn los liet / van de punt van het potlood,
en / vervolgens
vrijelijk bewoog in de ruimte / – die plaats bood voor de scene – / om uiteindelijk te landen / in een vlek, of punt / op het plafond.
(Text & image / terkst en beeld, Drager Meurtant, 2021-2024)
Often the drive is caused by the wish / need to improve living conditions and procreation.
However, the effects may be a disaster for groups indigenous for a specific area. The Black Death, or plague, caused by Yersinia Pestis is related to migration due to war or trade. In the Americas, the arrival of European conquerers did lead to massive slaughter by violence and introduction of diseases for which native people were very vulnerable.
In the 21st century, migration is composed of people hired by companies as well as refugees from counries stricken by war and / or poverty. Increasingly, migration is caused by consequences of climate change.
There is often resitance against the arrival of migrants, often with focus most at refugees.
Walls are created in Europe that exceed mileage manyfold as compared to the former ‘Iron Curtain’.
Still, demographic changes in Europe and some other areas lead to a shift towards old age and insufficient numbers of young workers to keep business going, and threats of deficient care for elderly people…
At NDSM-Fuse the exhibition – curated by Ellen Klijzing – with 35 artists has focus on the experience of refugees.
The contribution of Drager Meurtant deals with slogans / banners telling refugees to
“Go To Hell = If You Are Not From Here”
Next to the banner with this text, separate words on pieces of wood, as advised by the curator, are present to charge visitors in seeking for word combinations.
Drager Meurtant, “Frontex – 2”. 2023
Finally, the letters cut from carton to serve as template for the painted banner, are assembled as collage with additional transformation.
Drager Meurtant, “Frontex – 3”, 2023
NDSM-Fuse ON THE RUN (OP DE VLUCHT), September 1st 2023 – January 28th, 2024.
When stones dance and move along the rythm of the surges of flowing times // and take a leave from the geometry imposed by builders seeking comfort and utility // and trees push out residing memories or on some occasion take place side by side // then eyes may wander in slow pace, step by step.
Wanneer stenen dansen en bewegen op het ritme van de golven van de tijdstroom en verlof nemen van de geometrie, opgelegd door bouwers die comfort en nuttig gebruik zochten // en bomen er de gezetelde herinneringen wegduwen; bij gelegenheid naast elkaar plaats nemen // dan kunnen ogen hier zwerven in langzaam bewegen, stap voor stap.
(Drager Meurtant, analog photo in The Provence, early 1980s, text 2017)
“We gaan op weg, ja, maar overal botsen we op grenzen: Grenzen die anderen stellen: fysiek, met douanecontrole, hoge hekken of soms zelfs met landmijnen. Of we botsen op limieten in normen en moraal. En, vroeger of later stuiten we op grenzen die ons lijf of geest tegenkomt”
Tentoonstelling in Kunstruimte De Melkfabriek, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, 27 mei tm 18 juni, 2023
Drager Meurtant – Staande voor het hek, lino-snede, 2018
Achttien kunstenaars uit acht landen laten hun visie zien in beeld of woord. In bijgaand boek tevens vijf essays van Richard Candidá Smith, Zhinia Noorian, David Estrada, George Kabel en Drager Meurtant, en achtergrondinformatie over over achtergrond en motief van de kunstenaars en beeldmateriaal.
Deelnemende kunstenaars
Initiatief van kunstenaars Drager Meurtant (NL), Jeanine Keuchenius (NL) en Petra Senn (D)
Verder nemen deel:
Katherine Chang-Liu (USA), Brian Dickerson (USA), Nina Fraser (Portugal), Joris van Gennip (NL), Carlo Grassini & Bill Thomas (USA), Sylvia Hubers (NL), Michal Iwanoski (Poland / UK), George Kabel (NL), Max King Cap (USA), Anna-Maria Komorowska (D), Oliver Merce (RO), Dorothee Mesander (GR), Ruth Philo (UK), Martien Vogelesang (NL).
The Milkfactory / De Melkfabriek, Guldenvliesstraat4H, 5211 AM, ‘s Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands
Brian Dickerson: ‘Vroman’ is een drie-dimensionaal ‘constructed painting’ dat aansluit bij het thema ‘Grenzen en Begrenzingen’ door het loslaten van vaste, fysieke posities
Preview (op uitnodiging) op 26 mei vanaf 15 uur
Formele opening 27 mei 14 – 17 uur
Openingstijden: Za 27/5, Zo 28/5, Ma 29/5, Za 3/6, Zo 4/6, Za 10/6, Zo 11/6, Za 17/6, Zo 18/6
Dagelijks van 13 – 17 uur.
Bill Thomas & Carlo Grassini – Welcome, collage, 2021
drager-meurtant 