In loss, adversity and grief, you often lose connection with yourself, the world, and others. Many people suffer from anxiety, sadness and loneliness as a result. By recognizing, for example, the such effects of profound change as grief, a different perspective on these feelings is opened up.
People need the experience of connection to get a better grip on their situation and see direction. Interacting with works of art can help restore and strengthen that connection. When one experiences loss, one often fails to see the wealth of possibilities the world has to offer. Art can expand one’s openness for those possibilities and move people forward.
Art in Grief is a collaboration between writer, coach and actress Geerteke van Lierop and the founders of RAAAF, Prix de Rome winning artist Ronald Rietveld and Socrates professor of Philosophy Erik Rietveld.
The Art in Grief project includes interviews and lectures on the importance of art in loss and grief, an audio tour of some of the artworks by RAAAF | Atelier de Lyon, written and voiced by Geerteke, and a short film based on her book Sea of Glass.
In 2023/2024 we did a research trip to Japan which has led to a new series of interviews and lectures (in Tokio, Okinawa (OIST), and the tsunami struck area of Iwate a.o.). Art in Grief has been presented at the Amsterdam University Medical Center, and the Universities of Oslo, Groningen and Amsterdam. For this we have strengthened the team with Art in Grief project assistant Aros Salah, camera man Stefan Bruijne and editor Lucas van Woerkum. In Japan we have been supported by journalist Kotaro Hirose, and our local project assistant Yoshimasa Nakamura. In 2026 we expect to finish the short documentary “Landscapes of Resilience” which is based on our work in Japan.