Nieuwe Instituut presents the work of Rotterdam filmmaker Janilda Bartolomeu on the Cape Verdean diaspora in Dakar, Senegal
Nieuwe Instituut and RAW Material Company are organising the public programme Archipelagoes of Bond in Dakar, Senegal, on 22 May. The focus is on Rotterdam filmmaker Janilda Bartolomeu and her work on the largely undocumented history of Cape Verdean migrants in Rotterdam and Dakar. The programme launches the next phase of Bartolomeu’s research on community identity in migrant groups, which she is conducting in collaboration with RAW Material Company in Dakar. The evening is part of a wider cultural programme by RAW Material Company, and is made possible with the support of the Dutch Embassy in Senegal.
20 May 2024
The Eleventh Island
Cape Verdean-born Rotterdam filmmaker Janilda Bartolomeu has spent several years researching the little-documented history of the Cape Verdean diaspora. One of these hidden stories is told in her film The Eleventh Island: Activating Silent Histories Through Video. There has been a Cape Verdean community in the Netherlands since the 1960s, mainly in Rotterdam, which is why the city is known as the “Eleventh Island” of Cape Verde.
Rotterdam shares this title with Dakar. In the first half of the 20th century, a large Cape Verdean community settled in the Senegalese city. They brought their culture, music, dance and food to Senegal and are now an integral part of the West African country’s rich cultural diversity.
The research project
In both Rotterdam and Dakar, Cape Verdeans have the image of being a “silent” migrant group. This is also reflected in the limited availability of historical information, archives and photographs. Given this scarcity, Bartolomeu started an ongoing research project in 2016 to collect the undocumented history of the Cape Verdean diaspora and islands. She previously worked on this as a researcher at the Nieuwe Instituut.
In 2025, Bartolomeu will continue this research during a residency at RAW Material Company in Dakar. The public programme Archipelagoes of Bond in Dakar on 22 May, which will include a screening of The Eleventh Island, marks the beginning of this phase of the project. Bartolomeu will continue to explore questions about the transmission of community identity and the sense of belonging across borders, drawing on the memories of families, their histories and their subsequent stories. The intention is for the research to be exhibited at the Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam in 2025.
Cultural programme in Dakar
Archipelagoes of Bond will take place on 22 May at the Cinéma Empire in Dakar. It is part of RAW Route, a programme by RAW Material Company consisting of an exhibition, a series of discussions, a book fair and other events. RAW Route takes place in Dakar in May, a vibrant month when many of Dakar’s cultural organisations and institutions host over 150 different events. Nieuwe Instituut’s contribution is a collaboration with RAW Material Company and is made possible with the support of the Dutch Embassy in Senegal.
Note to editors, not for publication
Read Janilda Bartholomeu’s essay on The Eleventh Island here. Some video stills are available here.
Press invitation to Archipelagoes of Bond
The Archipelagoes of Bond programme on 22 May in Dakar, Senegal, consists of screenings of three films by Janilda Bartolomeu and a panel discussion with the filmmaker, researcher Ramon Amaro of the Nieuwe Instituut and architect and curator Zineb Seghrouchni. The programme starts at 19:00 GMT at the Cinéma Empire, Dakar, Senegal. Members of the press are welcome to attend. Please register in advance with the press contact below.
Robin van Essel, Press Officer, +31 (0)6 3803 9218, r.vanessel@nieuweinstituut.nl.