In the exhibition Thin Air – You’re Gonna Carry That Weight by Joeri Woudstra and Hannah Rose Stewart, their shared interests in (anti-)capitalism, club culture, and architecture come together. Using a variety of props, stage elements, and performances, the artists highlight how the past can linger eerily in the present.
They are interested in exploringhauntology: how certain ideas, cultural elements, or potential futures can still be sensed in their absence, as if they haunt the present day. This can give rise to feelings of nostalgia, which Stewart and Woudstra connect in the exhibition to nightlife and club culture. The artists not only focus on the clubs themselves but also on the so-called liminal spaces of nightlife. The in-between spaces on the way from club to club, the dark corridors or alleyways, or the dimly lit backstage areas—all these spaces hold specific cultural significance for the artists and evoke a sense of nostalgia for them.
In the exhibition, art and nightlife merge into an immersive experience of sound, light, and art, offering a critical perspective on changing urban landscapes and the role of nightlife in gentrification. Clubs – described by the artists as ‘cathedrals of gentrification’ – are often located on the outskirts of the city in areas subject to redevelopment. The extensive program carefully curated by Woudstra and Stewart plays a key role in this, as various artists activate the exhibition in a magical way, reinforcing the connection between day and night, inside and outside, and between art and listening.
Additional production: Leona Elisa Tiemessen, Sophie Verdonk
