After passing away many years ago, when Lisette was only eleven, her grandfather is still the catalyst why she wonders about this connection to Indonesia. One of the effects the artist suffers from as a third generation Indo is called ‘Indisch (Ver)zwijgen’ (Indo’s Silence): to effectively remain silent about your past life in the Dutch East Indies, Indonesia, for the rest of your future life elsewhere. Feelings that someone can carry with them for a lifetime and (unconsciously) pass on to future generations. 

What happened when Ros’ grandfather at the age of ten, in 1926, was snatched away from his familiar surroundings in Java? Has he suffered from the displacement of ideas, habits, traditions, systems, social behavior and his daily life rhythms? How did his identity before and after take shape? Is all this nevertheless sensed in the (ancestral) memory stored in the (her) body? Can these relationships be revised and possibly (re)built? 

From the peephole perspective and peeking from above and below, to digging in the Javanese soil to gather information about the environment and Mother Earth: the artist searches for the invisible beginning. 

My Self, the (Unfamiliar) Roots explores how diasporic, cultural roots can be felt, embodied, and imagined through the body and the senses, particularly in relation to identity formation across generations. The project unfolds through multiple embodiments, each approaching heritage and identity from a different sensory perspective.

Now consisting of two embodiments of work (in progress):
1. ‘(the Act of) Uprooting’ (2023/2024)
2. ‘(the Act of) Smell-ing’ (2024-current).

Read an informative, elevated essay ‘Where Words Wane: Smell, Memory and Ros’ Uprooting’ written by Gabriella Gasparini, based on year-long conversations with Lisette Ros.
Published on NERO Editions.