Threads of Loss, Patterns of Return

Shizhe Qian

Threads of Loss, Patterns of Return exhibtion at Showroom MaMa in Rotterdam
Curated by Arsalan Ishaqzai

On show 23/05/2025 — 20/07/2025

"Threads of Loss, Patterns of Return" is a group exhibition at MaMA Rotterdam that weaves together diasporic stories of uprootedness, queerness, and the complex relationship to cultural origins. Curated by Arsalan Ishaqzai, the exhibition explores how individuals navigate longing for seemingly unreachable homelands while redefining their connections to heritage through imaginative landscapes.

“It seems impossible to imagine you, though I see the patterns of your landscape, return in the contours of my face”

The exhibition's central poem speaks to the impossibility of imagining ancestral lands while recognizing their patterns returning "in the contours of my face" - examining how diasporic identity carries both physical and emotional traces of places never fully known. Through this lens, the show investigates how narratives of belonging are shaped when caught between shadow and light, presence and absence.

The participating artists bring diverse perspectives to these themes. Sarjon Azouz, a Syrian-born showgirl and audiovisual artist based in Arnhem, uses vanity as research space in identity politics, creating excessive alter egos across nightlife, online platforms, and art spaces. Arjîn Elgersma (DJ Shahmaran) is a Dutch/Kurdish sound artist from Rotterdam who weaves percussive and bass-driven music, straddling tradition and experimentation while working through transformative life moments.

Maryam Touzani, a Rotterdam-based visual storyteller, examines Dutch and Moroccan heritage intersections, revealing hidden narratives that emerge where cultures overlap and conflict. Her work explores resilience amid historical violence, earning recognition at Rencontres d'Arles 2024 and selection for the FOAM Talent program. Shizhe Qian, a Hague-based visual artist from Northeast China, works with photography and AI to explore boundaries between autonomy and connection, using his background in physics, theater, and philosophy to challenge rigid categorization systems.

Curator Arsalan Ishaqzai moves between exhibition and club contexts, focusing on diaspora themes and counter-narratives. His programming speaks to diasporic communities formulating alternatives to dominant perspectives, believing in collectives that question systems and create space for new stories.

The exhibition operates as both intimate reflection and collective testimony, examining how diasporic subjects negotiate belonging when homeland remains simultaneously present and impossible to fully access.

https://thisismama.nl

Sarjon Azouz

Maryam Touzani

Maryam Touzani