New Statues of Liberty* – Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar & Sina Dyks
In 2023, the Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar organised the project *New Statues of Liberty* to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the Alkmaar Relief. Freedom has always been an important theme in the history of Alkmaar, because the city became known for resisting the Spanish siege in 1573. For this anniversary, the museum wanted to explore what freedom means in the present day. Instead of repeating historical images of freedom, the museum wanted to create new contemporary interpretations that reflect how people experience freedom today.
The Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar launched an open call for artists, asking them to create a new artwork that gave a modern meaning to the concept of freedom. The museum questioned what freedoms are most valuable today, whether freedom can be experienced without knowing restriction, and how freedom can be represented in a way that connects with people in contemporary society. Artists were invited to submit their ideas and proposals. After a selection process from 143 submissions and a public voting procedure, three artists were chosen to receive the commission: Sina Dyks, Gabriel Lester and Marinke van Zandwijk.
Sina Dyks, a Dutch textile designer, received the commission to create a new artwork about freedom through the medium of textile. Her artistic practice focuses on creating complex textile installations that combine technical innovation with storytelling. For this project, she developed the artwork *Liberty, Unfettered Release*, a large double-sided tapestry made from mixed yarns.
Dyks approached the theme of freedom by focusing on the idea that freedom is not experienced in the same way by everyone. Her work presents freedom as something personal, changing and dependent on perspective. The tapestry can be viewed from two sides, representing different experiences of freedom. One side shows a lush green landscape with warm colours, creating a feeling of openness, growth and vitality. The other side shows a more dreamlike landscape with cooler colours, creating a quieter and more reflective atmosphere. By creating two different viewpoints, Dyks shows that freedom has many meanings and cannot be represented by a single image.
The material choice is an essential part of the concept. Dyks uses textile because threads can represent individual experiences and connections between people. Through a specially developed weaving technique, parts of the yarn are brought forward, creating a three-dimensional effect. The visitor does not only look at the artwork but is visually surrounded by it, making freedom something that can be experienced rather than only observed.
An important part of the project was the participation of the people of Alkmaar. The museum and Dyks wanted local residents to become part of the creation process. Visitors were invited to donate threads that had a personal connection to freedom. These threads were transformed into new yarn and incorporated into the tapestry. In this way, the artwork became a collective representation of many individual ideas and memories about freedom.
Through *Liberty, Unfettered Release*, Sina Dyks created more than an image of freedom. She created a process in which freedom is built together through different voices, experiences and perspectives. The artwork reflects the idea that society is made up of many individual stories, and that these stories become stronger when they are connected. The tapestry therefore becomes a symbol of diversity, participation and shared freedom.
The project *New Statues of Liberty* demonstrates how museums can use contemporary art to connect historical events with current social questions. By giving artists the opportunity to reinterpret freedom, the Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar created a dialogue between the past and the present and invited visitors to think about what freedom means in their own lives.
