In 2023, the North Brabant Museum initiated discussions about an exhibition to be organised jointly with the Moluccan community and to be held in 2026, 75 years after the arrival of the first Moluccan KNIL (Royal Netherlands Indies Army) soldiers in 1951. Co-curator Manoah Salampessy and curator Floris van Alebaak worked together on the first ideas. From the start, it was clear that the community had to be given an active role in the entire process. That is why they opted for a working procedure in three phases: first listen carefully and collect stories, then work out ideas together with representatives from the community, and finally design the exhibition together with Moluccan makers.
Phase 1 – Empathising
In the first phase, the museum composed a team that carried out research into the contents and direction of the exhibition. The team undertook a literature review and visited other exhibitions, theatre performances and film screenings. The team also spoke with members of the Moluccan community to gain a better understanding of what is going on in the community. To further deepen the picture acquired in this way, the museum posted an announcement for the exhibition in 2024 and distributed a questionnaire in early 2025. The questionnaire, which was filled in more than two hundred times, gave a lot of information about personal experiences, important events and the manner in which the Moluccan-Dutch past is represented in museums, education and media, in particular the traditional media. The museum cooperated with CINOP for the analysis of these data. The questionnaire yielded thirty possible subtopics and made clear that there was a great need for an exhibition like Ketahanan.
Phase 2 – Brainstorming
The insights from the first phase formed the basis for three working sessions with the Moluccan community. The first two sessions, with a total of forty participants, took place on 24 and 25 June in the Moluccan church Gunung Batu in Amsterdam and at Het Noordbrabants Museum in 's-Hertogenbosch. Using interactive work methods, the participants explored the themes that were the most relevant to them. They used fictitious reviews, among other things, to share their ideas and discuss what, in their opinion, could ensure the success of an exhibition. The third working session took place on 9 September at the museum. Thirty participants worked in groups on short presentations on the themes they felt were important.
Phase 3 – Creating
On 23 September, the project team combined all findings into a concrete plan. This plan consists of a storyline with the above-mentioned four themes, a core message, a visitors' journey and a clear goal for the exhibition. Based on this plan, an objects list was drawn up that contained the most important objects, stories and narrators. This plan was finetuned and further enhanced in follow-up discussions with the community. Works by Hatutamelen, Eva Ririhena, Jerrold Saija and Tabitha Boekweit, among others, will be on display.
Ketahanan is created in close cooperation with Moluccan professionals who give additional substance and connection to the exhibition. Graphic designer Fâris van de Lisdonk takes care of the graphic layer, and creative strategist Chiara Titahena develops the online campaign in cooperation with Geraldo Solisa. Researcher, editor and director Chaya Pattiapon makes personal video stories of people from the Moluccan community. The sensitivity reading and editing were done by Rochelle van Maanen.
