This work was created by artist Jeroen Bodewits and was part of the poetry route Closer to the Neighborhood through the Het Nieuwe Westen neighborhood, an initiative of the Straatbeeld Foundation. In that project, artists were paired with poets. The work is based on the Surinamese poem old age, written by Louise Wondel (Paramaribo, 1971 – ibid., 2014):
old age
old age is a disease
because I, this woman
when I was young
when I put on my pangi
threw my ukulele over my shoulder
my kawaii around my ankles attached
then you haven't even got me yet
see the awasa dance
because then you would fall under the spell of a woman
oh!
If only I had the knowledge
then I would abolish old age
because old age, old age is a disease
[Translation: ARM Pakosi. From: Poetry International Yearbook 1998, Poetry International Foundation Rotterdam, 1998]
In this artwork, Bodewits depicts life through a cluster of hearts hanging from a figurative branch or tree, which also holds two black ravens. This representation encapsulates the futile joy of our existence, and for the artist, this is precisely what constitutes the essence of life. Just as humans live every day knowing they will one day die—yet constantly repressing that confronting reality in order to truly live—so too does the poem function. His use of color underscores this: red symbolizes the sensual, the spectacle of life. And perhaps also the idea that all life is part of a cycle. The abundance of hearts emphasizes that the cluster will eventually end, but simultaneously carries within it the promise of new life. This same ambiguity also applies to the black ravens, which are often associated with death, disaster, and the supernatural, but also with wisdom and knowledge. The ravens cast a menacing shadow over the whole. The project Closer to the Neighborhood marked the completion of the urban renewal of the Delfshaven neighborhood. The artwork was unveiled on November 11, 2005.
