When two people look at the same artwork, they each see something different. What our eyes see is coloured by our experiences.

In my eyes lets you see through the eyes of three people from Maastricht who are new to the Bonnefanten: Francisca Callemeijn, Fred Byrman and Maria Maas. From a pre-selection, they chose artworks they thought deserved to hang in the museum: five works from the Bonnefanten collection that have never been exhibited before. The three of them told Els Huver what they see when they look at the artworks, and you can listen to their thoughts as you look at the works yourself.

Els wants to make art and culture accessible to a more diverse group of people. In the presentation In my eyes, she explores what people see when they look at art. The exploration kicks off with three fresh pairs of eyes that have never seen the inside of the Bonnefanten before. By sharing their thoughts about these artworks, Francisca, Fred and Maria reveal something of themselves as well. Then it’s up to the visitors to share their own thoughts on what they see, by writing them down. That means we’ll get to know them a bit, too – through art.

Thresholds

The works you see here have never been exhibited before. To enter a museum, both artworks and visitors encounter thresholds. When the theme of an artwork doesn’t fit an exhibition or the material is too fragile, it stays out of sight in storage. For visitors, the thresholds are often of a socio-economic, cultural or physical nature. Through In my eyes, the museum wants to reflect on these thresholds and on the connective power of art.

The procedure

Els Huver visited the project participants with her microphone and a photo book containing fourteen artworks. The participants leafed through them at their leisure and gave comments on the works. Three of the five residents of Maastricht she visited reacted enthusiastically to one or more works and told Els why they liked them. A montage of the recordings of these conversations can be heard in the museum.

In the run-up to the exhibition, the three participants visited the Bonnefanten – for the very first time – in order to see their chosen artworks for real. The works were taken out of storage especially for them.

With permission from the composers and performers, the following music has been used for the montage of In my eyes.
Encora, Composition by Martin Fondse, Performed by Remy van Kesteren.
In de vroege zomer, Composition by Eric Vloeimans, Performed by Eric Vloeimans.
Mother Child: Reunion, Composition by Martin Fondse & Nynke Laverman, Performed by Martin Fondse & Nynke Laverman
No Man's Land, Composition by Martin Fondse, Performed by Kika Sprangers, Martin Fondse, Jörg Brinkmann
Hello Stranger/ Mother Child: Birth, Composition by Martin Fondse & Nynke Laverman, Performed by Lavinia Meijer