De Gapers

Inspired by the unique Dutch folk art of “De Gaper”. Its literal translation “The Yawner” is based on its appearance of the face with the mouth wide open, usually with a pill on the stuck out tongue. Although the name could be related to the faces of people staring at the early pharmacy windows with their mouths agape.

The origins lead back the late 16th century when during colonial times new spices and herbs with medicinal properties were brought to The Netherlands. Gapers were used as outdoor signs for pharmacies and drugstores as an early form of advertising. It only existed in The Netherlands (let alone a few places along the German and Belgian border).

The art form started to disappear with the normalization of “modern” medicine in everyday life and later due to new ways of advertising, but existed (albeit sporadically) up until the 1970’s. The art form has pretty much died out today and although there are still remnants of Gapers visible trough out the country, age and weather conditions have destroyed most.

The faces were sometimes very white European faces with a painful grimace depicting the patients but more often those of Moorish or Arabic (Muzelman) descent, pointing at the origin of the medicine. Due to this some (but not all) of the imagery has been considered racist in recent times and were sometimes taken down. As with all historic art there is a balance to be found in the historical cultural part of it and the value of conserving it. I’m hoping with these series to shine a light on the uniqueness of the lost art form foremost and by titling them a specific way, to touch upon the current opioid crisis. Maybe this is a far stretch. If you disagree, take a chill pill.