Wisdom and Hell
For Jeroen Bosch the funnel is a symbol of both wisdom and deceit. Dante describes hell as an enormous funnel-shaped cavern with nine circles.
Jaap de Ruig's space in the section No Holds Barred at Art Amsterdam 2010 was fitted out as a workplace. In a circle of light, David, a young Romanian gypsy, was making tin funnels. A video projection on the back wall showed how he and his family work at home. David scrapes a living by hawking his funnels beside the main road. This has become more and more difficult since Romania joined the EU.
Jaap de Ruig and David are acquainted since twenty years. Although Jaap de Ruig was the 'official' artist, it was their mutual desire to work together and focus attention on several themes: household goods versus design, Romanian gypsy poverty versus Western European wealth, the symbolic value of the funnel, and the beauty of craftmanship.
Courtesy: Galerie Maria Chailloux
