Je merkt je eigen vooroordelen als je gaat praten met mensen; het is als mens onmogelijk om volledig oordeelloos te werken.

Ik heb veel onderzoek gedaan. Ik las me goed in en heb met veel mensen gesproken die met het doden van dieren te maken hebben: van slagers en jagers tot mensen die werken met proefdieren en anderen uit mijn directe omgeving. Ik liep steeds enkele dagen mee met verschillende mensen voordat ik begin met filmen, om er zo achter te komen hoe mensen zouden  reageren op mijn aanwezigheid voordat ik alles ging vastleggen  met de camera.

Afgelopen maart en april had ik een residentie in de Bierumer School, gevolgd door een tentoonstelling die daar nu te zien is en die ik zelf heb ingericht. Tijdens de residentie heb ik materiaal gemonteerd en omgezet in een installatie en film. In mijn films gebruik ik veel analoge technieken voor de animaties, zoals monotypes en ander drukwerk. Het is arbeidsintensief, maar ik werk er graag mee; het geeft de film een tastbaarheid die anders moeilijk te bereiken is. Daarnaast wil ik dat de tentoonstelling toegankelijk is voor voor een breed publiek, van volwassenen tot kinderen. Handgetekende beelden zijn hiervoor geschikter omdat ze een zachtere vertaalslag maken dan foto’s, waardoor ze soms makkelijker bespreekbaar zijn. Hoewel het onderwerp ongemakkelijk is, vind ik het belangrijk dat de tentoonstelling uitnodigt tot nieuwsgierigheid en misschien tot nadenken over de ethische aspecten van onze omgang met de natuur.”

Okki’s expositie Dierendoders | verhalen van vliegenmeppers tot ganzenschieters zie je t/m 31 mei 2025 in de Bierumer School.

Wil je Okki blijven volgen? Dit kan via haar website en Instagram:

🧑‍💻 okkipoortvliet.com
📱 instagram.com/okkipoortvliet

Okki Poortvliet (Emmen, 1999) followed the Artist-in-Space trajectory Lucht, intended for visual artists who have a development question in which they want to take a new or deepening step in their practice. This trajectory, in contrast to others, offers space for artists with different practices and working methods to participate in Artist in Space. During her trajectory, Okki investigated what it does to a person to kill an animal. She accompanied various people and conducted conversations based on philosophical-personal curiosity. Okki started her research with a short residency at VHDG and was supervised by co-directors Daphne Verberg and Ellen de Haan of Het Resort. She is a visual artist, (documentary) filmmaker and philosopher in the making. Her films have an anthropological, experimental character.

“When I lived in Eindhoven, I discovered that Brabant had more pigs than people, but at that time I had never seen one. Every day, more than 1.5 million animals are killed in slaughterhouses in the Netherlands, which often takes place behind the scenes. For most of us, however, killing an animal is an invisible process; meat comes ready-made from the supermarket, with no memory of the life that preceded it. This invisibility of killing animals and the question of what it means for us has fascinated me since my time at the academy. People don’t like to talk about this subject and don’t really want to think about it either, while they have no problem killing a mosquito, for example. I wonder where our discomfort with death begins. This cognitive dissonance between what we would rather not see and what actually happens intrigues me. It is strange that you can grow up without ever seeing an animal being slaughtered, while it is happening all around us.

To better understand the subject, I spoke with hunters, veterinarians, and people who live in their own country. work that involves killing animals, but also people who slaughter their own chickens at home. It was interesting that they were often open to talking about this, although you often also noticed a reluctance because people prefer not to hear the details. I did not necessarily want to take an activist position; I am interested in understanding how others relate to this subject and how they experience it. I wanted to open a conversation and make the subject discussable. My goal was not for people to change their behavior immediately, but to make them consciously think about their ethical boundaries.

You notice your own prejudices when you start talking to people; it is impossible for a human being to work completely without judgment.

I did a lot of research. I read up on it and spoke to many people who are involved in killing animals: from butchers and hunters to people who work with laboratory animals and others from my immediate environment. I always spent a few days with different people before I started filming, to find out how people would react to my presence before I started recording everything with the camera.

Last March and April I had a residency at the Bierumer School, followed by an exhibition that is now on display there and that I designed myself. During the residency I edited material and converted it into an installation and film. In my films I use a lot of analogue techniques for the animations, such as monotypes and other printed matter. It is labour-intensive, but I enjoy working there with; it gives the film a tangibility that is otherwise difficult to achieve. In addition, I want the exhibition to be accessible to a wide audience, from adults to children. Hand-drawn images are more suitable for this because they make a softer translation than photos, which sometimes makes them easier to discuss. Although the subject is uncomfortable, I think it is important that the exhibition invites curiosity and perhaps reflection on the ethical aspects of our dealings with nature.”

Okki’s exhibition Animal Killers | stories from fly swatters to goose shooters can be seen until May 31, 2025 in the Bierumer School.

Want to keep up with Okki? You can do so via her website and Instagram:

🧑‍💻 okkipoortvliet.com
📱 instagram.com/okkipoortvliet