BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 CALSCALE:GREGORIAN PRODID:adamgibbons/ics METHOD:PUBLISH X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VEVENT UID:27168@offbeat.amsterdam SUMMARY:Afrovism DTSTAMP:20260909T002555Z DTSTART:20261031T190000Z DESCRIPTION:An evening celebrating arts and culture\n\nThis edition of Afro vism invites both artists and guests to reflect on dreams as\nthey are not an escape from life\, but a rehearsal for it. In a time that often\nasks us to react rather than reflect\, Afrovism offers a space to pause\, to\ni magine differently\, and to reconnect with the quiet knowledge that lives\ nbeneath certainty.\nEach artist approaches this landscape from a differen t perspective: through\nmusic\, painting\, scent\, light\, and live creati on. Together\, they reveal dreams\nas living environments that shape how w e understand ourselves\, one another\, and\nthe futures we dare to imagine . This evening should feel like the answer to the\nquestion ’ What happens when a room full of people dreams together?’’\nBy engaging all five sense s of the viewer through light\, sound\, scent\, food\, and\nvisuals\, the experience extends beyond simple observation and becomes fully\nimmersive. Each element is carefully curated to evoke the essence of dream\,\ntransl ating it’s qualities into a multi sensory journey. The evening unfolds as\ na living atmosphere rather than a sequence of programmed moments. Guests enter a\nspace suspended between presence and dream.\n\n\nLINE-UP\n\nABIGA IL JOHNSON\n\nAbigail Johnson opens the evening with a voice that feels bo th tender and deeply\ngrounded. Blending R&B and soul\, her music explores healing\, self-forgiveness\,\nand quiet transformation with remarkable ho nesty. There is a warmth in the way\nshe sings—each lyric unfolding with g entle conviction\, inviting listeners into\nmoments of reflection and rene wal. Her performances are intimate yet powerful\,\nleaving an impression t hat lingers long after the final note.\n\nMIDI KWAKWA\nMiDi KwaKwa brings a sound that feels both expansive and deeply personal –\nblending alternat ive R&B\, neo-soul\, Afro influences\, and textured guitar\nmelodies into music that invites reflection and connection. Rooted in her\nGhanaian heri tage and shaped by a journey of self-discovery\, her songs explore\nhealin g\, identity\, and emotional growth with warmth and honesty. On stage\, sh e\ncreates an atmosphere that is intimate yet immersive\, drawing listener s into a\nworld where every performance feels like a heartfelt conversatio n\, lingering\nlong after the music fades.\n\nSAFAE GOUNANE\nThe visual wo rld is shaped by Safae Gounane\, whose paintings emerge from\nintuition\, memory\, cultural inheritance\, and lucid dream imagery. Her figures\nappe ar as if they belong to multiple timelines at once— manifestations of inne r\nworlds made visible. Drawing from themes of intimacy\, identity\, exist entialism\,\nmetaphysics\, and human connection\, Gounane creates composit ions that blur the\nboundaries between reality and imagination. Her painti ngs do not simply depict\ndreamlike scenarios\; they operate according to the logic of dreams\, where space\nbends\, time overlaps\, and meaning unf olds through feeling rather than certainty.\nDuring the evening\, her work becomes a portal into layered worlds where the\ntangible and intangible m eet.\n\nSISTERS JANSSEN\nWithin the space\, Sisters Janssen give us a glim pse of their atelier and create\na visual environment in the balcony. Root ed in their Curaçaoan heritage and\nshaped by their upbringing in the Neth erlands\, their work reflects layered\nidentities. Color\, form\, and text ure become tools to express this in-between\nspace. Their compositions fee l intuitive yet intentional – playful on the\nsurface\, but carrying deepe r reflections on identity\, belonging\, and\ntransformation. During the ev ening\, Sisters Janssen will simulate their atelier\nand create a live bod y of work in which they explore the theme of memory within\ndreams.\n\nELL A WANENDEYA\nThroughout the evening\, Ella Wanendeya weaves an invisible n arrative through\nlight and scent. Her installations move beyond the visua l\, engaging the senses\nthrough atmosphere—subtle shifts in illumination and curated fragrances that\nevoke memory\, nostalgia\, and presence.\n\nU P CLOSE COMMUNITY\n\nUp Close is a cultural initiative rooted in collectiv e growth through\nintentional exchange. Led and moderated by writer and cu ltural researcher Chloé\nHeyart\, the platform operates as a connector bet ween people\, spaces and\ndisciplines. Up Close brings communities togethe r to share knowledge\, spotlight\ninspiring bodies of work and create a sp ace where storytelling and inspiration\ntake centre stage. This takes shap e and form through curated industry talks and\nconversation circles aimed at empowering individuals in their work and crafts.\n\nFAOUZIAT BIERA FAOU S\n\nFaouziat Biera Faous is a multidisciplinary creative and the founder of\nAfrovism. She is born in Burundi\, raised in the Netherlands and curre ntly calls\nAmsterdam her home. She studied Fashion Design and continued w ith a studies in\nFashion Branding at Amsterdam Fashion Institute. During the 8 years of her\nstudies she began her career as a freelance fashion st ylist\, earning features in\npublications such as Vogue\, Nataal Media and more. After graduating Fashion and\nBranding\, she worked for brands such as Daily Paper\, Calvin Klein\, Gisou\, The\nNew Originals and more.\n\nH er passion for art led her to establish Afrovism\, a platform where she\nc elebrates Arts and Culture. Throughout the years\, Afrovism has had beauti ful\neditions at venues such as Soho House\, Foam Museum Amsterdam\, Felix Meritis\nAmsterdam\, Paradiso\, Oscam and Compagnietheater Amsterdam.\n\n Together\, these elements form a continuous landscape – one that does not ask to\nbe observed from a distance\, but to be felt from within.\n\nWould you like to attend this program\, but don’t have the means to pay for a\n ticket? Send an email to info@felixmeritis.nl\, we can work something out. \n\nNote: By booking this ticket\, you agree to potentially be photographe d during\nthe event. URL:https://offbeat.amsterdam/event/afrovism-2 GEO:52.3699902;4.884254 LOCATION:Felix Meritis - Keizersgracht 324\, 1016 EZ Amsterdam STATUS:CONFIRMED CATEGORIES:afro,alternative,amsterdam-centrum,community,food,keizersgracht, live,music,performance,rnb,soul,storytelling,talk X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:

An evening celebrating arts and culture

This edition of Afrovism invites both artists and guests to r eflect on dreams as they are not an escape from life, but a rehearsal for it. In a time that often asks us to react rather than reflect, Afrovism of fers a space to pause, to imagine differently, and to reconnect with the q uiet knowledge that lives beneath certainty.
Each art ist approaches this landscape from a different perspective: through music, painting, scent, light, and live creation. Together, they reveal dreams a s living environments that shape how we understand ourselves, one another, and the futures we dare to imagine. This evening should feel like the ans wer to the question ’ What happens when a room full of people dreams toget her?’’
By engaging all five senses of the viewer through light , sound, scent, food, and visuals, the experience extends beyond simple ob servation and becomes fully immersive. Each element is carefully curated t o evoke the essence of dream, translating it’s qualities into a multi sens ory journey. The evening unfolds as a living atmosphere rather than a sequ ence of programmed moments. Guests enter a space suspended between presenc e and dream.

Line-Up

ABIGAIL JOH NSON

Abigail Johnson opens the evening wi th a voice that feels both tender and deeply grounded. Blending R&B an d soul, her music explores healing, self-forgiveness, and quiet transforma tion with remarkable honesty. There is a warmth in the way she sings—each lyric unfolding with gentle conviction, inviting listeners into moments of reflection and renewal. Her performances are intimate yet powerful, leavi ng an impression that lingers long after the final note.

MIDI KWAKWA
MiDi KwaKwa brings a sound that f eels both expansive and deeply personal – blending alternative R&B, ne o-soul, Afro influences, and textured guitar melodies into music that invi tes reflection and connection. Rooted in her Ghanaian heritage and shaped by a journey of self-discovery, her songs explore healing, identity, and e motional growth with warmth and honesty. On stage, she creates an atmosphe re that is intimate yet immersive, drawing listeners into a world where ev ery performance feels like a heartfelt conversation, lingering long after the music fades.

SAFAE GOUNANE
The visual wor ld is shaped by Safae Gounane, whose paintings emerge fro m intuition, memory, cultural inheritance, and lucid dream imagery. Her fi gures appear as if they belong to multiple timelines at once— manifestatio ns of inner worlds made visible. Drawing from themes of intimacy, identity , existentialism, metaphysics, and human connection, Gounane creates compo sitions that blur the boundaries between reality and imagination. Her pain tings do not simply depict dreamlike scenarios; they operate according to the logic of dreams, where space bends, time overlaps, and meaning unfolds through feeling rather than certainty. During the evening, her work becom es a portal into layered worlds where the tangible and intangible meet.

SISTERS JANSSEN
Within the space, Sist ers Janssen give us a glimpse of their atelier and create a visua l environment in the balcony. Rooted in their Curaçaoan heritage and shape d by their upbringing in the Netherlands, their work reflects layered iden tities. Color, form, and texture become tools to express this in-between s pace. Their compositions feel intuitive yet intentional – playful on the s urface, but carrying deeper reflections on identity, belonging, and transf ormation. During the evening, Sisters Janssen will simulate their atelier and create a live body of work in which they explore the theme of memory w ithin dreams.

ELLA WANENDEYA
Throughout the evening, Ella Wanendeya weaves an invisible narrative thr ough light and scent. Her installations move beyond the visual, engaging t he senses through atmosphere—subtle shifts in illumination and curated fra grances that evoke memory, nostalgia, and presence.

UP CL OSE COMMUNITY

Up Close is a cultural init iative rooted in collective growth through intentional exchange. Led and m oderated by writer and cultural researcher Chloé Heyart, the platform oper ates as a connector between people, spaces and disciplines. Up Close bring s communities together to share knowledge, spotlight inspiring bodies of w ork and create a space where storytelling and inspiration take centre stag e. This takes shape and form through curated industry talks and conversati on circles aimed at empowering individuals in their work and crafts.

FAOUZIAT BIERA FAOUS

Faouziat Biera Fa ous is a multidisciplinary creative and the founder of Afrovism. She is born in Burundi, raised in the Netherlands and currently calls Amst erdam her home. She studied Fashion Design and continued with a studies in Fashion Branding at Amsterdam Fashion Institute. During the 8 years of he r studies she began her career as a freelance fashion stylist, earning fea tures in publications such as Vogue, Nataal Media and more. After graduati ng Fashion and Branding, she worked for brands such as Daily Paper, Calvin Klein, Gisou, The New Originals and more.

Her passion for art led her to establish Afrovism, a platform where she celebrates Arts and Cultu re. Throughout the years, Afrovism has had beautiful editions at venues su ch as Soho House, Foam Museum Amsterdam, Felix Meritis Amsterdam, Paradiso , Oscam and Compagnietheater Amsterdam.

Together, these elements f orm a continuous landscape – one that does not ask to be observed from a d istance, but to be felt from within.

Would you like to attend this program, but don’t have the means to pay for a ticket? Send an email to info@felixmeritis.nl, we can work something out.

Note: By booking this ticket, you agree to potentially be photographed during th e event.

BEGIN:VALARM ACTION:DISPLAY DESCRIPTION:Afrovism TRIGGER:-PT1H END:VALARM END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR