Meet the Artists: Maja Zeco, Caitlyn Main and Roos Dijkhuizen
Remembering Together: Aberdeen City have appointed their artists to co-create memorials with communities. Meet Maja Zeco, Caitlyn Main and Roos Dijkhuizen
Maja, Caitlyn and Roos are artists who all have strong connections with Aberdeen through family background, residency, work, and studies. Caitlyn’s practice uses a variety of tactile materials to explore themes of care and intimacy. Maja’s migrant background and experience of the Bosnian war inform her experiences of working with sound, including oral histories. Roos’ work in nature and interest in botany will inform both indoor and outdoor activities that will engage with seeds, plants, and the natural world.
Maya, Caitlyn and Roos say :
Image credit: Fergus Connor (Left to right: Maja Zeco, Caitlyn Main and Roos Dijkhuizen)
“The pandemic has affected us all in deep and personal ways. We are aware that communities have been affected in varying degrees and that the pandemic accelerated inequalities for marginalised groups. As artists from different backgrounds, we are interested to learn from Aberdeen communities. In the process, we would like to facilitate creative safe spaces through making, in order to inspire, and help us find a voice to express our experiences of this intense time. We are aware that talking about these personal struggles can be very difficult so we are keen to create an environment that is supportive, playful, and encouraging. We’ll also provide space for people to record their experiences and testimonies for future audio archive. The activities will be developed with the groups of people we will work with, from writing and drawing, sound, to making with clay and outdoor activities. These programmes should help people to process their experiences of the pandemic. We aim to work with tactile materials and introduce text-based materials, word-plays, short stories, or even cooking recipes. Following the principles of co-creation, our creative activities will be used as methods to explore creative ideas and the ways in which the future memorial might be shaped. This is the reason why we would like to combine activities that include words, sounds, making, materials and objects.”
“We feel that as practising artists we could bring a sensitivity to this project which feels really necessary given the theme - we want to take care within details, take joy in creativity and processes, and prioritise open mindedness. We are excited about this project because of its focus on individual experience - we care deeply about Aberdeen and its inhabitants. We are delighted that we can help amplify voices and hear directly from the people who live here.”
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