Open Paviljoen
Space for Encounter, Art, and Imagination

‘To be human is to be intended toward the other’ wrote philosopher and theorist Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. The Hague is not a uniform city. With more than half of its residents of non-Dutch nationalities, the city forms a vibrant, multilingual community with countless stories. To celebrate its richness, this summer, West opens the Open Pavilion for the second time: a meeting place for the many voices of The Hague. This year, this living artwork is located at Spuiplein, in the heart of the city!

Spivak reminds us that being human is an ongoing exercise in connection: turning toward the other, not in order to conquer or fully understand the other, but to create a shared world. This applies to all of us, and also to The Hague as a city. By cherishing our differences, we enrich ourselves.

That is the starting point of the Open Paviljoen: a place for encounter, exchange, and imagination. For the second time, we present this collective, open artwork. This year, the Open Paviljoen takes place on a floor installation by conceptual artist Ahmet Öğüt, in collaboration with Urban Café.

Ahmet Öğüt’s work for the Open Paviljoen is about freedom of thought. His work ‘Perspective’ is inspired by Pink de Thierry and her collective endeavour Mass Moving (1968 – 1976). Influenced by her colorful and unconventional performance practice, Öğüt creates a unique visual language in which the viewer’s own perspective takes the center stage.

From June 13 through July 19, the pavilion will host a cultural program featuring workshops, conversations, performances, and lectures. Local initiatives, national voices, and international thinkers come together in an open setting where art actively contributes to society. This year’s focus is on Turkey: a country inextricably linked to both the present and past of the Netherlands. The Open Paviljoen offers space for cultural exchange, critical reflection, and artistic expression.

The Open Paviljoen is a collaboration between West Den Haag and its many partners, including Stichting Avrasya, which has contributed for more than 25 years to the empowerment and position of women with migrant backgrounds in The Hague. Also part of the pavilion is ‘De kleurrijke Eettafel’, the co-creative heritage project by Stichting Muze’s Kus, Harlin, and Kijkpunt, in which people for whom culture is not an accessible domain, take the stage. Stichting Mesopotamië will once again screen films, and in collaboration with InArt Den Haag, Bahar Cankuş will lead several workshops on traditional Turkish art forms.

The Open Paviljoen forms the foundation for our long-term research project ‘Worlding Art.’ Inspired by Spivak’s ideas on ‘worlding’ as a process in which no single story is centred, but from a multiplicity of voices, art institute West Den Haag works toward a more equal, inclusive, and diverse society. The Open Paviljoen is the place where artists and residents of The Hague come together to build a new cultural space, for and by the city. With its ongoing programming in the former embassy building and the Open Paviljoen, West not only brings contemporary art to the center of The Hague, but also creates space for hospitality, dialogue, and shared imagination of another world.

Would you like to contribute to the Open Pavilion or have any questions? Feel free to contact us via press@westdenhaag.nl or +31 6 20661122.