31 october 2023, Flor Linckens
Last chance: an artistic dialogue between David Bade and Tirzo Martha
Until 5 November, KERSGALLERY in Amsterdam is displaying a duo exhibition that features the works of David Bade and Tirzo Martha. In ‘Ssstt - Heredity or Diversity,’ the artists delve into themes of heredity, identity, and cultural diversity within contemporary art. The artworks have recently been acquired by the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam, and works by Tirzo Martha have also been added to the collection of Museum Beelden aan Zee. Moreover, the artists’ often provocative works have been showcased frequently this year, including exhibitions at the Cobra Museum, Museum Jan Cunen, Kunsthal Rotterdam, ARTZUID, and Voorhout Monumentaal.
Bade and Martha both hail from Curaçao and share a strong professional and creative partnership. Both artists believe in the power of art as a tool for social change and awareness. In 2006, they co-founded the Instituto Buena Bista (IBB), a center for contemporary art in Willemstad, which originated from ArteSwa, established by Bade in 2004. The IBB serves as a pre-academic artistic trajectory for young talents, that also organises residency programs and various cultural projects. In addition, Bade and Martha have collaborated on numerous other exhibitions and art projects, including "All you can art" in cooperation with Kunsthal Rotterdam and the IBB. The artists also created the project "Look at me now", featured in the ‘Slavery’ exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam in 2021.
David Bade was born in 1970 in Willemstad. A versatile artist, he works across various disciplines, including sculpture, painting, drawing, and installation. Experimentation plays a central role in his practice, and he is fascinated by themes such as transience, history, and contemporaneity. Bade’s works are intuitive, chaotic, playful, contradictory, and colourful, often assembled from found objects and natural materials. His materials range from an old sofa to expanding foam. Bade creates complex assemblages that cast a critical and occasionally cynical eye on the world, while simultaneously retaining a humorous edge. After studying at Hogeschool Holland in Diemen and Ateliers '63 in Haarlem, Bade immediately won the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1993. His work has been exhibited at prominent locations including the Venice Biennale, the current Kunstmuseum Den Haag, and the Stedelijk Museum.
