Miko Veldkamp - Buketan
If you’ve ever traveled to a foreign land then you know the exhilarating feeling of wandering around a town where nobody looks like you. Where almost no one speaks your language and practically everything you see is new and confusing. It’s quite exciting, initially. But after a few days, and especially if you happen to be travelling solo, it begins to wear you down. The misunderstandings, lack of connection, and almost total absence of anything comfortingly familiar quickly translates from exotic to isolating.
That feeling is essentially the gist of these images by Miko Veldkamp. Born in Suriname, raised in the Netherlands and now living in New York, Veldkamp has lived a truly multicultural life. It’s something that is often praised, as international migration and exposure to new cultures can be an enriching way of life. What’s less often acknowledged is that the further you stray from your roots, the harder it is to fit in and find a sense of place.
I guess that explains the ghostly layered effect that Veldkamp favours. A watery wash of oil and acrylic allows disjointed scenes to blend together like a multi-cultural picnic where everyone brings a dish from their homeland. The compositions aren’t chaotic, but most of the works lack a clear perspective. There’s rarely a single focal point as multiple layers of ideas unfold like a flood of memories. Cows, piano keys and boys on bicycles float amongst flowers and flowing water. I approached these works as I do when wandering foreign street markets, slowing down to see which sights, sounds, smells and colours will catch my attention.
A recurring theme, as best I can tell, is isolation. Despite the presence of many figures and faces, they almost always appear alone. Occupying space in the painting but never looking like they are actively part of it. In one, a young man sits at the edge of an indoor swimming pool. He is seen from behind, viewing another swimmer and what appears to be an audience staring back at him. It would be all too easy to interpret this as an athlete’s struggle were it not for the overwhelming sense of isolation. Maybe I’m projecting? The boy is seen from behind his back, but I assumed this was a disjointed, out-of-body self portrait.
The gallery text explains that the flowers and other rural images reference the Javanese communities of Surinam. You need not have visited that tropical South American country to understand they represent a more green and natural way of living than the red brick buildings with indoor pools that Veldkamp now inhabits. The collision of imagery makes me wonder if he is longing for places he has left behind, haunted by the ancestral ghosts of his homeland.
It can be unsettling to occupy a place but never really have a sense of belonging. Things surround you but only ever seem to pass you by, rarely stopping to allow you an embrace. Veldkamp’s compositions capture the unique experience of a stranger in a strange land, showing how a mash-up of moments and memories, many which may never have actually existed, blend and blur to infuse the lived experience. These introspective works capture the confusion of feeling like you don’t fit in.
Plan your visit
‘Buketan’ ran from 08 Oct - 09 Nov 2024.
Visit aliceamati.com and follow @_aliceamati on Instagram for more info about the venue.
Visit mikoveldkamp.com and follow @mikoveldkamp on Instagram for more info about the artist.
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