ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART CATALOGUE OF EXHIBITION
OPENING Thrusday 15 December 2016, from 17:30 - 20:30 Where: Aqua Hotel, Rue Stassart 43, 1050 Bruxelles The exhibition will run from 15 December 2016 to 15 February 2017
All the funds raised with these arts go to Ecuadorean lawyers who are defending the local communities in Ecuador who still suffer from Chevron’s legacy. We are grateful to all the artists who have supported this cause.
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
Chevron must clean up its mess in Ecuador Next legal action of the crowd Seize the assets of Chevron in Canada, in order to collect the legitimate compensation of 9.5 billion US dollars, needed to clean up the contamination of 400,000 hectare Amazon rainforest and to set up a large health care program. To cover the ongoing costs for preparation of this upcoming legal step, scheduled in 2017, the crowd needs US $28,000 (25.000 euro) by the end of 2016.
Summary In 2011, the Ecuador National Court ordered Chevron to pay 9.5 billion US dollars to clean up 400,000 hectare of polluted Amazon rainforest and to set up a large health program. The contamination was arising due to inappropriate and outdated oil extraction methods between 1964 and 1995. Until now Chevron refuses to pay and has meantime stripped all its assets in Ecuador.
Legal progress The Supreme Court decision in Canada allowed the victims to proceed with the enforcement in that country.
Case background and who The Crowd supports Chevron left Ecuador years ago, but it “forgot� to take home the 16 billion gallons of toxic waste that contaminates streams and rivers relied on by local inhabitants for their drinking water, bathing, and fishing. After that, Chevron ignored the Ecuadorian National Court and refused to pay the 9,5 billion US dollars to clean the contamination of 400,000 hectare Amazon rainforest. This deathly pollution of the Amazon was caused by Texaco (acquired by Chevron in 2000) by using inappropriate and outdated oil extraction equipment and methods between 1964 and 1995, in the Lago Agrio oil field. Ever since, indigenous people and farmers have been permanently exposed to contaminated water and lands, causing many of them to fall (very) ill, even leading to their deaths. In the affected area, high rates of cancer and other diseases occur.
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
In 1993, these 30,000 victims sued Chevron, formerly Texaco, in a class-action lawsuit in New York. Nine years later, Chevron, however, persuaded the U.S. Court to transfer the case to Ecuadorian courts. The subsequent trial in Ecuador took ten years, finding Chevron guilty of damaging the Amazon rainforest and its indigenous people. This verdict, which ordered Chevron to pay more than 9 billion US dollars to clean up its mess, has been reviewed and confirmed by three different layers of judgment within Ecuador, including the Ecuadorian National Court. Chevron has stripped its Ecuadorian assets and promised the victims ‘a lifetime of lawsuits’. They have already spent tens of millions of US dollars to refrain from paying the 9.5 billion dollar judgment! The victims are now taking legal steps to seize the assets of this oil multinational in other countries, for instance Brazil, Argentina and Canada, in order to collect their legitimate compensation. The EEB (European Environmental Bureau) is the NGO/nonprofit that The Crowd Versus works together with for this case. The 30,000 victims are represented by Servicios Fromboliere Cia. Ltda, based in Ecuador and supported by the EEB. The EEB, currently consisting of over 150 member organizations, is the largest federation of environmental citizens’ organizations in Europe. Updates are available online:
www.thecrowdversus.org
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°1 and N°2: From serie AMEN Start PRICE/ piece: 500 € Drawing/ dimensions: 75 x 55 cm ARTIST: Philippe Stella
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
Philippe Stella Philippe Stella (1981 in Antwerp, lives and works in Los Angeles, USA.) is a Belgian actor, author and artist. Even though the art of drawing was in his blood since his childhood, Philippe Stella chose a career in a very different artistic discipline. He studied spoken word, acting and drama in high school in Antwerp and afterwards followed acting courses, which brought him from Brussels, via Paris, to Los Angeles where he continues to develop his acting skills. In 2002 Stella permanently established himself in L.A. as an artist and actor. He currently holds guest roles in TV-series and films in Hollywood, but his pen, pencil and paper are never far from hand: he illustrates poems by Steve Faber, an acclaimed scriptwriter with whom he has previously worked. To make ends meet in between film shoots, Philippe Stella also works in a Jewish bakery where he has become somewhat a local legend for his spectacular and creative decorations on wedding cakes. This “artist come pastry chef ” was consequently invited to create the dessert decorations during the Oscar nominations, which were served at the prestigious Vanity Fair. Fascinated by the Hasidic Jewish community, Philippe Stella draws and paints the daily life of the Jewish Community with sharp observation and a touch of humor. His work had immediate success, beginning amongst the Jewish community of L.A., after which numerous exhibitions rapidly ensued. ...His interest and presence in the L.A. music environment is recognizably a new source of inspiration in Stella’s visual work. His views of the Hollywood lifestyle are that of a critic with playful irony, often accompanied by a subtle play with words. The eternal complexity of the man/woman relationship, by which the artist puts the woman on a pedestal, placing ‘the strong male sex’ in an inferior position, is an important theme in Philippe Stella’s work. In this series Stella reflects these powerful emotions that his muse evokes, like: “les cris du coeur “. Being an autodidact, Philippe Stella never prepares his works in advance: the colorful works are created quickly and spontaneously as if from a gut feeling, with a continuous urge to explain in drawings what he cannot express in words. His work is reminiscent of the painters and the poets of the Cobra-movement who expressed themselves in the same spontaneous manner, or of Jean Dubuffet who honored the same spontaneity, from which “l’art brut” arose. During his youth Philippe Stella spent a great deal of time in Cadaques at the Spanish coast, where he not only explored the works of Dali and Picasso, but also developed great admiration for these masters. If Picasso ever announced that art has no meaning and that painting is the only thing a painter has to do in order for the artwork to overwhelm him, then his beautiful words “je ne cherche pas, je trouve”, are perhaps also to be found in Philippe Stella’s thoughts. CRAZY LOVE is the first solo exhibition in Belgium.
www.philippestella.be/about.html ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°3: School in Haiti where waters runs for the first time out of the tap. Start PRICE/ photo: 200 € High quality photo prints / Dimensions: 40 x 60 cm ARTIST: Dieter Telemans
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Dieter Telemans ABelgian b.1971 Dieter was born and brought up in Burundi before moving to Brussels, where he is now based. After six years working for the Belgian newspaper De Morgen he now works mainly on personal projects. His first long-term documentary project and book, Heart of Dance, focused on the African music scene, taking in Soukous music in Kinshasa, gospel in South-Africa, rap in Senegal, and female musicians in Mali, as well as Blocos Afros in Brazil. Troubled Waters, a global investigation into the ecological and humanitarian consequences of droughts, floods and irresponsible water management which included photographs from the Aral Sea, the Horn of Africa, Spain, Egypt, Bangladesh and Turkey, followed in 2007. His work has been published by the New York Times, Le Monde, the Independent, National Geographic, Amnesty International, Grande, Onze Wereld, Ration, De Morgen, and De Standaard. He is continuing his work on water and sanitation and is currently compiling examples of good water management from around the world which will appear in a book Bridges Over Troubled Waters.
www.dietertelemans.com
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N°4: Sleeping beauty N°5: ‘Hope is a waking dream’ (Aristotle) N°6: À waking dream Start PRICE/ paint: 700 € Dimensions: 40 x 50 cm ARTIST: Annemie Podevyn ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°7: Sleeping beauty Start PRICE: 500 € Draw with pincel and chinese ink Dimensions: 50 x 70 cm
Annemie Podevyn (° 13/02/1961 - lives and works in Berchem, Antwerp) Annemie Podevyn began her career as a fashion designer. She designed and realized costumes and sets for theatre, opera and film in Belgium and the Netherlands. She was commissioned by famous contemporary artists such as Ilya Kabakov, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Ettore Spaletti, Guillaume Bijl and Wim Delvoye. 2007 - 2014: Annemie Podevyn attends ‘painting’ classes at the Academy of Fine Arts of Berchem and several specialized courses such as water color and graphics. Collective exhibitions and artistic projects (a selection): - Bordello (an art project in the Antwerp red lights district), 2002: Selected by Jan Hoet. - Belfius Art 2012 - Masterclasses of the Antwerp art academies in the Athenaeum of Deurne, 2012: selected by artist and architect Luc Deleu. - Art Project: Artyfashion (graffiti art and fashion), Kalmthout, 2013 - Artists Route: Zoersel Expo 2014 The Universe, the Big Bang and the origin of life are themes that are explored by Annemie Podevyn. They are a constant source of inspiration for her. Even as a child, at the sight of the landing on the moon on TV, Podevyn put these images in gouache on paper. Her personal encounter with Belgian astronaut Dirk Frimout is a highlight that has determined the evolution in her work. Podevyn’s fascination with the universe and life on earth also explains her interest in man and the human body - dressed (her fashion creations) or undressed ... Podevyn’s specialization in model and naked drawing in Chinese ink reveals her admiration for the Oriental way of working: simplicity and essence in a few lines. For her ‘Sleeping Beauties’ pretty, ultra slim young girls are modelling. Quirky colors with a preference for dreamy blues render the contours a higher plasticity. ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°8: Planet Bomb I N°9: Planet Bomb II N°10: Planet Bomb III Start PRICE/ picture: 570 € Dimensions: 71 x 71 cm ARTIST: Natacha de Locht
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Natacha de Locht Belgian, I was born in Brussels in 1969 and still reside here today. Following my studies in Fine Arts in Brussels at ERG (Ecole de Recherches Graphiques) until 1995, I worked in different areas: decoration of theatre and film sets; creating films of theatre sets’ accessories; coordination and animation of art workshops for children and intergenerational art workshops. Meanwhile I have always continued my personal artistic pursuits. Emulsions of waste In this series, I observe and experiment with different materials from my daily life that accumulate so quickly and are intended to be discarded. It can be food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, jars that have reached their expiration dates, etc. I focus on the phenomena of the mutation of contents. To me, each particle is alive, full of energy and life force ... In my research, I gave free rein to random combinations. Uncertainty, randomness, or even accidents guide my work. Materials confront, bind, attract, repel, mingle and unravel each other. The particles weave themselves space and light. When we become aware of the subject, we may feel a sense of aversion. The initial visual attraction transforms into repulsion. I like the contrast the work creates between attraction and disgust. It reflects to me the way we consume today; the initial beauty and the promises of a dream and then ultimately the reality of the product from a global, ecological point of view. Through this work, I wish to question our relationship with our consumerism, aesthetics and aging, with overproduction, globalization, planned obsolescence, economic crisis, exploitation, pollution which we all are inevitably linked with... Transformation, scale change, and displacement are predominant in my work.
http://natachadelocht.blogspot.com
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°11 and N°12: diptic in acrylics Start PRICE for diptic: 150 € Dimensions for each paint: 30 x 25 cm ARTIST: Brenda Matter Cabrera
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Brenda Matter Cabrera Born in Chili, Brenda works and lives in Brussels. She has a master on pedagogy and visual arts. Attracted by all disciplines of visual arts, she always feels more comfortable with colours, silk paper, and any other material that allows her to work on it. All these materials are fused, forming a symbiosis increasingly close to the abstract, in which the texture and colour make the whole scene. The concept or image of inspiration gives space for searching some poetic and touching aesthetic. She has been part of many collective and solo exhibitions in Belgium. These are her most recent ones: 2016 Collective Exhibition for Projet Musem Night Fever / Belvue Museum Brussels 2016 Collective Exhibition AKA / Stepman Koekelberg House 2015 2nd Arts Salon in Jette / Abbey Dieleghem Jette 2015 Solo Exhibition / Cultural space Rayon Vert Jette 2014 – 2013 -2012 – Parcours of Artists in Jette/ Molenbeek 2010 Collective Exhibition / Evere cultural center & Every Oasis center
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N°13 - N°14 Start PRICE for both portraits together : 600 € Dimensions: 30 x 30 cm & 40 x 30 cm ARTIST: Ronny Goudvis N°15 Start PRICE 300 € Dimensions: 30 x 30 cm
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°16 - N°17 Start PRICE/ both together: 700 € Dimensions: 70 x 50 cm
Ronny Goudvis (°01/13/1962 - lives and works in Berchem, Antwerp) 2008 - 2016: Ronny Goudvis attends ‘painting’ classes at the Art Academy of Berchem. Selected by Kaat Debo, director of the MoMu (Fashion Museum of the Province of Antwerp) for the “Master Classes” exhibition in the Zuidepershuis, Antwerp, showing the graduation projects of the Antwerp art academies. The paintings by Ronny Goudvis are among classic genres such as portrait, still life and landscape, genres that have not lost their relevance over the centuries. Ronny Goudvis portrays the models in bright, pure colours. The artist catches their gazes. Their faces look serious and thoughtful: a snapshot with soft blue shades emphasizing expression and nuance. In his still life paintings we see warm and cheerful colours in a balanced composition: an intimate piece of our daily lives that we might cherish. The town landscapes in quieter colours express different feelings. A quiet village, a southern church surrounded by cypress trees: no cold images of desolation, but the desire of occasional solitude, to be away from our hectic world, an internalization. Everything is about expression and emotion.
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N°18 : Autumn 2016 Start PRICE for paint: 450 € Dimensions: 100 x 80 cm. ARTIST: Tonney Bicker
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Tonney Bicker (° 25/07/1946 - lives in Berchem near Antwerp, Belgium, and works in Oisterwijk, Netherlands) In 2009, Tonney Bicker started attending painting classes under the supervision of Liesbeth Backelandt, a Dutch artist, and ever since she regularly participates in collective exhibitions in the Dutch province of North Brabant. Autumn 2016 Autumn leaves, colored deep red by the glow of a warm autumn sun, swirling in a dense shell around us. Everything colors, smells and exults in the exuberance of life. Nature is a celebration. Autumn 2016, a landscape in motion, is considered a lyrical abstract work, painted with a great sense of color and texture. In the context of French lyrical abstraction, the expressions “Paysagistes abstraits’ and ‘Peintres the dépaysage’ were often used, meaning that “non-figuration” led to an association with the landscape. It was the expression of an internal image unlike the externally observable world of an impressionist landscape.
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART
N°19 : ABANDONED WASTE “Ecuador, Lago Agrio, 28-02-2014 abandoned waste which belong to Chevron -Texaco.” N°20: ABANDONED WASTE “Ecuador, Recinto La Victoria, Sucumbios, 01-03-2014 a boy playing on a old oil pipe above the river.” N°21: ABANDONED WASTE “Ecuador, Well Sacha 53, Sucumbios, 04-03-2014 a cricket was found trapped in oil waste pit.” Start PRICE / picture: 750 €. Limited edition prints. Dimensions/ picture: 40 x 60 cm. ARTIST: Cris Toala Olivares
Cris Toala Olivares Cris Toala Olivares is a Dutch-Ecuadorian photographer born in 1982 in Manta, who has followed an education in Amsterdam. Cris is an independent photographer who covers stories globally, and domestically in Europe. His work has been published in many international newspapers and magazines, among others; National Geographic, GEO, der Spiegel, etc… as well major news agencies such as Reuters and The Associated Press. His photographs received several international awards, and exhibited in many galleries and museums. These three pictures are a testimony of what Chevron has left in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Cris has a full series of pictures illustrating this case. He is the author of the photo book ‘The Amsterdam Canals’.
www.toalaolivares.com
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N°22 : Paul van Ostaijen (Flemish writer) Start PRICE: 500 € Dimensions: Foot (5x5 cm) Total high 17 cm ARTIST: Wilfried Pas
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Wilfried Pas Wilfried Pas studied at Sint-Lucas in Brussels, at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp and at the National Higher Institute of Fine Arts also in Antwerp, where he became professor of sculpture.
Zwarte Panter in Antwerp.
In 1966, he wins the Prize Berthe of Art and in 1984 the Eugène Baie Prize. He collaborates with Fred Bervoets and Walter Goossens in the lithographic workshop “Clot”. He also works with Bram et Georges in Paris and together with these artists and Jan Cox makes up the core of the gallery De
In 1972 and for the first time, he becomes known thanks to his exhibition of bronze works which contains a world populated of strange, one-legged and lunatic beings. Fear and decay dominate his work. It is important to highlight that he portrays his artist friends using wax and waste materials. In 1992, he starts with the creation of a series of monuments to Flemish writers: Charles of Woestijne (1992 Meise-Grimbergen), Willem Elsschot (Antwerp, 1994), Paul Ostaijen (Antwerp, 1998), Herman Teirlinck (Antwerp, Studio Herman Teirlinck) and Gerard Walschap (Antwerp, 2006) and Anton van Wild Red (Sint-Niklaas). These works are publicly exhibited. In 1999 together with the architect Jo Crepain, he realizes the monument to King Baudouin placed in Linkeroever (Antwerp). In 2004 he is honoured by the province of Antwerp with the award of the five-yearly prize for an artistic career. In 2008, Wilfried Pas makes an image of the Flemish actor Julien Schoenaerts which is placed in St. Willibrord Church (square Kerkstraat) in Antwerp. Some of his sculptures are currently at the Middelheim open air sculpture museum in Antwerp and at the Provincial Museum of Fine Arts (PMMK) in Ostend. In 2013 he makes the busts of King Albert II and Queen Paola that since then stand at the Belgian Senate.
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THE EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENTAL BUREAU (EEB) Created in 1974, the EEB is now the largest federation of environmental citizens’ organisations in Europe. It currently consists of over 150 member organisations in more than 30 countries (virtually all EU Member States plus some accession and neighbouring countries), including a growing number of European networks, and representing some 15 million individual members and supporters. The EEB stands for environmental justice, sustainable development and participatory democracy. Our aim is to ensure the EU secures a healthy environment and rich biodiversity for all. www.eeb.org
THE CROWD VERSUS Sometimes, legal action is the only way to stop multinationals. That’s where we gather, and why we gather. The Crowd Versus helps NGOs/nonprofits raise money for targeted legal actions against those making profits at the expense of the environment or humanity as a whole. Together we can empower justice and hold them accountable. And, equally important, generate attention for the injustice in media and public or political debate. Winning a lawsuit gives a specific verdict for a specific case and often creates a very important change in law. That presents a much-needed change for the better in social or environmental justice. www.thecrowdversus.org
AQUA HOTEL Aqua Hotel is supporting this project by offering the space for this exhibition. The EEB works closely with Aqua Hotel when organizing events in Brussels. Featuring a monumental blue sculpture by Arne Quinze and many artworks throughout the hotel, Aqua hotel has always been themed around art. The team also commits to a green policy by producing electricity with solar panels, cutting paper consumption and using ecological and soft cleaning products. www.aqua-hotel-brussels.com ART FOR JUSTICE & JUSTICE FOR ART