Catalogue > At random

The film revolves around a forgotten event: the 1972 riots directed against guest workers in Afrikaanderwijk, a neighbourhood of Rotterdam. It poses questions such as how we remember, the role of subjectivity in shaping our collective memory, and the transformative potential of re-enactment as a means of reawakening the past. Central to this film is a meticulous focus on memory, as it seeks to unravel the subjective nature of individual recollections, recognising that memory is not a fixed entity but rather a fluid and subjective phenomenon. The aim of the film is to highlight contrasting shades and nuances that exist among various individual remembrances of the Afrikaanderwijk riots, allowing for a diverse range of perspectives to be acknowledged and woven together. Reenactments feature as pivotal elements within the project, which not only allows for the recreation and revisitation of the past, but the process of reenactment itself operates as a potent tool for reclaiming forgotten narratives.

Cihad Caner (b. 1990, Istanbul) is an artist based in Rotterdam. His practice explores the politics of the image through the mediums of video, photography, music, motion-capture, and CGI. Caner’s research-driven practice revolves around (re)presentation, language, marginalisation and alterity. His fictional CGI characters are often multi-lingual protagonists in non-linear, metaphorical narratives that employ humour, absurdity, and poetry to critique the status quo. Recently he has exhibited at Akademie der Künste, Berlin; Kunstinstituut Melly, Rotterdam; Kasseler Kunstverein, Kassel; Nest, Den Haag; Shahin Zarinbal, Berlin; Blitz Malta, Valletta; EYE Film Museum, Amsterdam; Július Koller Society, Bratislava; Kunsthal Mechelen, Mechelen; Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, and ?stanbul Modern, ?stanbul, among others. Caner was a resident artist at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten (2021-2023).