Red Croissant Collective was a temporary collaboration between artists, designers and musicians brought to life for the occasion of the Rietveld exhibition in the Oude Kerk of Amsterdam.

In the performance, the Sweelinck organ, which was used by the famous Dutch composer Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, was resurrected with Arabic chants under the sound of a new electronic composition.

The work originates from an interest in the exploration of transformation in Christian and Islamic religion; it relates to the worshipping of symbols used to represent faith and identity marks, and to the act of reaching the divinity through praying, singing and preaching.

The work produced consists of a series of monumental flags and a musical landscape, both elements of a performing act which is held during the opening of the Rietveld show. It is an attempt to analyse and dissect the constructions of religious faith.
The path followed is one of transformation and contamination, following the examples of the Oude Kerk, of the Aghia Sofia in Istanbul, and countless other religious sites across the world that have been used, throughout history, as places of worship for different cults and faiths.
These holy places are seen just as religion is seen: as a product of mankind, they were subject to the violent transformations, irrationalities and contradictions that characterize our existence since the beginning of time.

The outcome, in its roughness, communicates a sense of urgency and shows the difficulty to grasp a unitary view. This theme lies at the very core of the most sensitive issues in everyday life as well as in history.
The Red Croissant Collective in its own way tries to indicate a refusal of the constructed doctrines as a step towards a coexistence and a merger that is seen as the only possible way to a peaceful existence.



The яed ☾roissant ☾ollective:

Concept: Maria Naidich Chapital and Floor Nagler

Organ: Maarten Helsloot

Music composition: Trippin Jaguar

Vocals: Karima el Fillali

Graphic design: Luca Carboni