Hold still, please

Hold Still, Please was an interdisciplinary project in which dance, film, and photography came together. In this exhibition, dancer Anna Raiola explored the tension between movement and stillness. Inspired by archival images and sculptures from collections such as the Rotterdam City Archives, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, and Rijksstudio, static forms were translated into living poses.

In collaboration with filmmaker Yasemin Kevser and photographer Isabel Martin, the possibilities explored when the ephemeral nature of dance is confronted with the apparent permanence of sculpture. The performance was executed several times an hour and constantly situated on the boundary between stillness and movement. Photographs and film captured these fleeting moments and were presented alongside the archival material that served as inspiration.

The exhibition created a layered dialogue between past and present, body and object, temporality and transformation, and invited visitors to look closely at what normally passes quickly.