NIPENIKUPE//TAKEGIVE//NEHMENGEBEN - Jan van Esch
Jan van Esch ( Netherlands )
How to give and receive without being snared by the treacherous wonder of the gift?
The culture of giving has long been presented to us as something holy. From religious texts to dubious festive season marketing, we are subconsciously reassured that to give is the most noble of actions.
Jan van Esch and collaborators deconstructs in his NipeNikupe series this narrative by delving into the otherwise ignored psychological motives and power play between giver and receiver, embodied by second hand clothes (mitumba) ‘donated’ in the North and ‘received’ in the South.’’ – Valerie A Amani
Jan van Esch continued questioning the culture of (secondhand clothes) giving during his second residency at ZK/U.
Next to his work on the Gift, Jan was the curator for the Food and Footage 2019 season.
