The “canned emotions” series, is a series where I put my emotions into food cans. The original idea started in 2019 and it’s a following up of the “canfood alphabet” made in 2018.
“Negative emotions often get hidden, behind a nice looking package of pretending. But what‘s inside the can?… “
The title has a deeper layer. It is a metaphor for how I see my life with emotions, in myself, but also within others. In my opinion, there is still a big taboo on being open about your feelings. People often pretend to be fine, while they are actually not.
I compare this with canned foods and their packaging. In the store I’m always attracted to the packaging. Once you open the can, you often see that the inside is not as appealing like the outside. The saying “never judge a book by its’ cover” has the same principle as this metaphor. We tend to be closed off to our real feelings (like unopened cans).
Canfood Alphabet
The canfood alphabet was made in 2018, for a school assignment. It is inspired by the street “West Kruiskade” in Rotterdam. In this street you find a variety of stores and cultures. All the different stores have one thing in common; “canned food”. The same brands are sold within different cultures. The cans capture the diversity but also the equality in the street.
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Canned emotions – The exhibition
On june 30th, 2022 was the opening of the ‘canned emotions’ exhibition; curated by Hiphopinjesmoel in Rotterdam. The exhibition included the original canned emotions and other works related to the theme.
Flyer of the exhibition, june 2022
The opening
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Catalogue:
Canned emotions:
Gouache paintings
Spraycans
Situations
Canned posters
Pop-art cans
