In Raquel’s monumental works, people are always central.  For the past 3 years, Raquel and her team have been working on the solo exhibition that they made especially in the context of 750 years of Amsterdam. Inspired by Rembrandt et al., who portrayed Amsterdammers of importance to the city in the 17th century in monumental group portraits, van Haver also wanted to record this for the 750 years of Amsterdam with those who are important to Amsterdam now in the 21st century. They started based on a list of suggestions from various advisors that reflected the city broadly. Subsequent 3 – 4 hours long personal interviews of Raquel with a selection of 150 people. After that, 100 people were chosen who are important in this century for the city of Amsterdam and who helped shape it.

It so happens that I am one of the hundred people being immortalized in ‘The Bringer(s) of Life’ one of those six monumental group portraits by Raquel van Haver, soooo coool!!

The chosen individuals have left their mark on the city over the past 25+ years, individually but often also together. Visible but, as frequently, invisible to the wider public. In the 6 huge paintings, we see people who come from art and culture, homeless and refugee care, science, government, activism, entertainment, philosophy, fashion & retail, sports, and more.

Unfettered, passionate, committed people from ‘the culture’: game changers, paradigm shifters, door openers, and bridge builders, critical residents who continue to question the city, residents, and ‘passers-by’, as well as themselves when it comes to ethics, equality, and justice. The connections between people are partly visible in who they are with in a painting, but are also there between the people in the different paintings.

Exhibition runs till November 30, 2025

H’Art Museum building, Amstel 51, Amsterdam