Oriana Ikomo

From 20 June to 17 August, MAISON the FAUX presents THE TAIL, a performance installation that draws on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid to explore themes of transformation, and the sacrifices that are made in pursuit of one’s true identity. The work is developed in close collaboration with artists Diamanda Dramm, Dae Uk Kim, Anto López Espinosa, Oriana Ikomo, Bien De Moor and Luthfi Darwis.

THE TAIL challenges and expands the archetype of the mermaid to confront the complexities of selfhood and the desire for autonomy. It engages with and recontextualises the queer subtext woven through decades of reinterpretations of the mermaid figure over time, highlighting its potential as a symbol of personal transformation and self-empowerment.

Blending music, fashion, performance, scenography, video and visual art, THE TAIL creates an immersive, multi-disciplinary experience. Audiences are invited to become part of the narrative through live activations of its scenography. In collaboration with Framer Framed, a public programme will further create opportunities for communities to engage with, and reinterpret, its ideas.

THE TAIL begins with two live viewings at the Machinefabriek, home of NITE and Club Guy & Roni in Groningen, on 10 & 12 June, before traveling to Framer Framed in Amsterdam from 20 June to 17 August, including thirteen live performances.

MAISON the FAUX is ‘a creative studio posing as a grand couture fashion house’, investigating new forms of fashion through experience, interaction and performativity.

Opening
Register here for the opening on 20 June from 18:00 to 21:00.

Additional performances will take place on 25, 26, 27 and 28 June, and 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11 and 12 July. Sign up here: https://framerframed.stager.co/web/tickets

Address: Oranje-Vrijstaatkade 71, 1093 KS, Amsterdam

The project is co-commissioned by Framer Framed and NITE, and co-produced by Framer Framed, NITE, and This is Not an Office.

Supported by: Ministry of Education, Culture and Science; Amsterdam Fund for the Arts; Municipality of Amsterdam; VriendenLoterij Fonds; het Cultuurfonds and Performing Arts Fund NL.

Photographer: Dion Bal
Light assistant: Eugene Berkovski
Talent: Adama
Make-up artist: Marly van den Bosch
Hair stylist: Eldrigde Mullenhof

Shane Koppers

Framer Framed

THE TAIL by MAISON the FAUX

Artistic researcher and art educator Leyla Sünnenwold invites all queer people to join the Archiving Queer Personal Stories workshop and start a personal archive. Through collective archiving and moments of dialogue, this session supports participants in transforming memories and ephemeral life experiences into meaningful zine entries.


Archiving Queer Personal Stories

On 14 Aug, We Are Queer (WERQ) invites you to a workout in solidarity with the mermaid's transformation, followed by a conversation on reclaiming sport as a trans and/or queer athlete. WERQ is Amsterdam’s first queer gym, where binary preconceptions are kept outside and no outfit is too outrageous.

Finding Our Legs: A WERQ Workout for THE TAIL

On 26 September, Werkplaats Molenwijk will once again host Kijkje in de Keuken, the free quarterly neighbourhood dinner by Karam Keuken. While the neighbourhood chefs practise their culinary skills, locals participating in the weekly Vrij Atelier will share their paintings and poetry during an exhibition. This edition will be attended by district council member Esther Lagendijk to get to know the local community.

Karam Keuken has already cooked a delicious three-course dinner for the neighbourhood eight times. Friday 26 September will be the ninth time that Ghada, Enaam, Latifa and chef Sonya will be putting their restaurant into action. Various Moroccan and Syrian dishes will be served, such as harira soup, pastillas, couscous and chebakia.

Everyone is welcome to join us from 17:00. On the evening itself, the Vrij Atelier exhibition will also be opened. On the initiative of local resident Janneke, every Monday afternoon there is the opportunity to draw and paint, either independently or with an assignment. The exhibition is the result of three months of art-making at this location.

This time, Amsterdam-Noord district council member Esther Lagendijk will also join the dinner. As part of her plan to connect more directly with residents and thus be better informed about what is going on, she is organising a number of dinners in the neighbourhoods of Noord. In the Molenwijk, she will be joining Kijkje in de Keuken, an existing dinner event that brings together many Molenwijk residents.

Kijkje in de Keuken in Werkplaats Molenwijk

The HüzünProject is a collaboration between Nihat Karataşlı and Inez Piso. They take Hüzün, a Turkish word for an emotion known for its untranslatability, as the starting point for this project supported by Koc University and Mondriaan Fund. Instead of assuming what a dictionary states, their project questions the limits of language, translation and understanding in an ongoing expedition trying to find the meaning of a single word.

Taking Turkish literature as its starting point, they create an archive that aims to collect video interviews from translators, authors, linguists, psychologists among many other individuals that reflect upon Hüzün. These interviews form the base for an Artificial Intelligence machine that tries to learn the meaning of this ungraspable word. This expedition aims to exceed the limits of the humane and asks if a machine can share the same emotions with humans.

You are invited to think with them about the meaning of hüzün as an emotion with plural meanings, not a singular one, that goes beyond language, beyond that what a five letter word could ever cover.

Partner event: Read My World - HüzünProject

On 10 Aug, writer and performer Lova Yu invites participants to rethink the dominant narrative of The Little Mermaid and similar fairy tales. Instead of identifying with the heroine that is traditionally assigned to be desired, the workshop explores what it means to inhabit the marginal voices: Ursula, the sisters of the mermaid, the prince, the sand on the beach or the seafoam.

The Other Voice in the Fairy Tale

On 9 August, artist and activist Prince Frimpong invites you to The Ghana Queer Underground, a multimedia presentation examining what it means to reclaim one’s existence as a queer individual in Ghana. Through spoken word performances, a screening and a talk, it offers an intimate glimpse into Ghana’s vibrant queer underground culture.


The Ghana Queer Underground

On 8 August, Framer Framed hosts an evening of spoken word, combining performances with an open mic. Queer Tales of Transformation, organised by novelist and researcher Laurence Scherz and inspired by MAISON the FAUX’s installation THE TAIL, explores how storytelling through spoken word can embody playful transformation.

Spoken Word: Queer Tales of Transformation

Journalist Lucette ter Borg gaat in gesprek met schrijver Frank Ligtvoet en kunstenaar Jan Hoek over de rol van media in het doorbreken van structuren van misbruik binnen de culturele sector. Ze gaan in op de queer context, waarin loyaliteit, kwetsbaarheid en zichtbaarheid zich vaak vermengen met stilzwijgende machtsverhoudingen.


Media, macht en seksueel misbruik in de queer culturele sector

Dani

Faraz

On 20 July, LIMBO launches their second booklet, giving a glimpse into their experiences of the past few years. LIMBO, a collaborative project initiated by researcher Fabian Holle and heritage professional Noa Bawits, examines the role of art in queer refugees’ lives in the Netherlands. It aims to create a safe space where queer individuals with a refugee experience can explore themes such as identity, transformation and community. 

LIMBO #2 Booklet Launch

On 11 May 2025 at Het Documentaire Paviljoen, curator Rasha Salti presents two films to accompany the exhibition Past Disquiet, shedding light on two aspects of its intention and process. Past Disquiet is a research-based documentary and archival exhibition currently on show at Framer Framed, that has unearthed forgotten or unwritten histories of solidarity in the arts.

Before the Dying of the Light, by Ali Essafi (2021), is a poetic reconstitution of a peculiar chapter in the recent history of Morocco, when artists were mobilised to resist autocratic policies muzzling freedom of expression in the 1970s. La Jetée, the Fifth Shot, by Dominique Cabrera (2024), is a dizzying investigation that reveals connections between Chris Marker’s vanguard cult science fiction film, La Jetée, and the history of France’s colonisation of Algeria.

Programme:
16:30 – 18:10
Before the Dying of the Light
Get tickets via idfa.nl: https://www.idfa.nl/en/composition/a7c40ad9-0be1-4b13-80ae-a6a7925bc5b7/past-disquiet:-before-the-dying-of-the-light/

19:15 – 21:35
La Jetée, the Fifth Shot
Get tickets via idfa.nl: https://www.idfa.nl/en/composition/861bb217-45f7-4812-9c24-931a7d1eab2e/past-disquiet:-la-jetee-the-fifth-shot/

Admission is free.

Do you also think art should be free and accessible? Please consider supporting us with a donation when registering or by becoming a Framer Framed Friend: https://framerframed.nl/over-ons/friends/

This event may be photographed and filmed. Kindly let us know in advance if you prefer not to have your picture taken.
Framer Framed is supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science; Amsterdam Fund for the Arts; Municipality of Amsterdam; and VriendenLoterij Fonds.

🎨 Cultural

Film screening: Past Disquiet at Het Documentaire Paviljoen

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Maggie

Christie

Eric

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Framer Framed is an Amsterdam-based platform & exhibition space for contemporary art, visual culture
