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MOSs Social Club is a collective of various selves, or a holobiont: a collection of organisms living in and around a host, together forming a symbiotic ecological unit. In this case, the host is Hannah van der Schaaf (1994). MOSs stands for Multiple Other Selves and evolved out of a desire to move away from individualism in the art world. According to Van der Schaaf we are constantly subjected to external influences, and by actively embracing collaborations with others, we can disclose a world of unforeseen opportunities.
The installation Within a fluid ministry (2024) at Prospects introduces us to the world of water. MOSs Social Club invited five writers (Kleopatra Vora, Mirte van den Bos, Müge Yilmaz, Gilleam Kriegsman and Ruben Planting) to each create a story about an aquatic creature – ranging from a sewage worm and a whale to a willow. Serving as the point of departure for the installation, these stories give a voice to organisms that are not often heard by the civil servants who formulate our water laws. And yet, the existence of these organisms is dependent on the exact same water. The project thus critiques the government’s bureaucratic approach to water management. Counterbalancing the gloom surrounding climate change and pollution, MOSs Social Club tells stories that spark resistance and encourage love. Because if water laws are oblivious of the fact that water also flows through a multitude of beings – including us humans – they will never truly work.
Text: Esther Darley
Translated from Dutch by Marie Louise Schoondergang (The Art of Translation)