Ahmed Dainan (1947 – 2022) was a painter and poet, born in the famed artists' town of Asilah in Morocco. He began painting at a young age, in the early 1960s, and attended the art academy in Tetouan. When Morocco was going through its years of lead, with little room for artists and alternatives, he left for Europe. He sold paintings on La Rambla to fund his journey.

Dainan settled in Amsterdam in the late 1960s. In the 1980s, he exhibited during the summer months at the annual moussem (art festival) in Asilah, where he also maintained a friendship with the painter Corneille. The Dutch Migranten TV produced a compelling television portrait of him in the 1980s.

The work in Dainan’s collection is modern – he certainly was a pioneer – and ranges from abstract expressionism to magical realism. His daughter, Samira Dainan, now manages and curates his work and wrote a book in his memory following his death.

Fatima Oulad Thami is a self-taught henna artist. Her practice is deeply rooted in the Moroccan and Amazigh traditions of henna painting. In her work, henna serves as an artistic medium that connects tradition, cultural heritage, female craftsmanship and generations of passed-down knowledge.

Drawing on her awareness of her role as a central figure within the henna tradition, Oulad Thami creates work that challenges essentialist representations and makes space for alternative narratives. By applying henna to colonial archive images, she gives women – who were portrayed in an exotic and erotic manner by colonial powers – a central presence and dignity of their own. In this way, her work demonstrates how an age-old art form can contribute to the revaluation and continuation of cultural heritage and the reclaiming of narratives.

Hangfeng Chen is a visual artist and filmmaker working between Amsterdam and Shanghai. His practice reappropriates archival materials to create dialogues between personal memory and historical narrative. Working across drawing, papercut, collage, and animation, he explores connections transcending time and geography, reflecting on hybridity in the anthropocentric era. He holds an MA from the Netherlands Film Academy and is currently an artist-researcher at the University of Amsterdam. His works have been exhibited and collected internationally, including by Rockbund Museum, Today Art Museum, Palais de Tokyo, Zone2Source, Wereldmuseum, and White Rabbit Museum. His films have screened at CinemAsia, MADATAC Festival, Ibrida Festival, and the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen.

Dunya Zita is an interdisciplinary artist who explores the intricate facets of human perception and interaction through a documentary lens. As a self-taught and autonomous artist, Zita primarily makes use of lens based media (photography and film), audio and writing. Driven by intuition and curiosity, Zita has taught herself about interdisciplinary creation as a tool for exploring and philosophising about the themes she aspires to research. 

The starting point of Zita’s work is usually personal and concerns different forms of connection and perception. Zita is guided by the belief that true insight comes from appreciating the value of each perspective and embracing the harmony found within conflicting opposites. Through her work, she aspires to weave stories within the themes of connection and perception, evoking a sense of awareness and understanding, thus igniting a transformative journey for both herself and her audience.

Heritage and Horizon is a project curated by student resident Mohamed El-Hirech. Drawing on his own Moroccan-Dutch background, Mohamed explores themes of migration, cultural heritage, diaspora and layered identity. Through an exhibition and programme series, Heritage and Horizon brings together diverse art forms and perspectives, creating space for connection, recognition and new conversations about what it means to feel at home.