Vragen om Kunst (Asking for Art) – image meditation by Koos Sluiter

During the opening of the exhibition “GEVONDEN” in the Catharinakerk in Doetinchem, I met someone who had received the invitation and was moved by what he saw. Here follows the story of Koos Sluiter, which I would like to share with you.

Dear reader,

I wish you a blessed Easter with all my heart. The light of Easter and the light of spring always go together, even if it is not the same light in everyone’s experience. The cry ‘Happy Easter’ comes at you from all sides, and really not only from the big supermarket chains, who cash in on it. Everyone deserves a happy Easter; that ranges from a few moments that cheer you up to an unbroken festive mood. Happy Easter has many faces.

After Easter, for many people everything will be the same again; Easter is over. So is it back to gloom? Everything is back to the old ways, or worse; that seems unavoidable and the signs do not give cause for hope. Something like that also echoes in the stories of the evangelists. ‘I’m going fishing again,’ says Peter. ‘It turned out differently from what we had hoped,’ say the Emmaus travellers. ‘We must tend to the body,’ say three women at the grave. Until! Until someone crosses their path, stands before them, walks beside them, until a different note is sounded.

From that moment it becomes a different story, from that moment Easter can become their own story. If they withdraw from that encounter, everything stays the same: richer by a beautiful story, but poorer by one illusion. For those who do not withdraw from that encounter, the following applies: Easter is not over, Easter lies ahead of you. Take heart, if you can, and do not give up hope.

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In the Gap

In the Catharinakerk in the centre of Doetinchem, an exhibition of work by Wiebe van Dingen, titled GEVONDEN, can be seen until 1 May 2026. He finds his working material in nature, such as in the seclusion of the Veluwe forests or in the wide landscape beyond. Searching for the unknown brings surprising finds that form the basis of his work. The sculptures on show are 3D, mostly of wood and sometimes supplemented with metal, glass or stone. Wounds in the wood turn into human figures that speak their own language, one that can be understood. The work ‘In the Gap’ led the artist to this reflection:

“I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land, but I found no one.”
Ezek. 22:30

“Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isa. 6:1-8

In every generation God looks for people who stand up for justice. The rights of the poor and the weak in society are always at stake. We must constantly make sure that injustice gets no chance. Rights and duties are laid down, but there are always situations in which people, perhaps unintentionally, suffer because they cannot defend themselves. There is a moral duty and a Biblical calling to stand up for the suffering. Near and far. There is no excuse for dodging it.

Ezekiel 22 is a crushing prophecy of judgement, full of images that come across as unsettlingly familiar, and here the princes and priests in Jerusalem are called to account for their misdeeds. And there is no one who stands up against this. I choose this image for this Easter Day because Easter is about someone who stands up; first he stands up against those who let the name of God disappear behind their striving to keep up their own standing and status. That holy defiance leads to his death. Yet he rises again because God confirms him in his willingness to stand up. The figure in the opening, against the blue background, is the first to rise. Easter looks back and Easter also looks ahead, as a call to follow this first one and stand ‘in the gap’.

Until 1 May, Wiebe is present on Saturdays to explain the works on show.
A warm welcome to all!