When the walled Punda neighborhood started bursting at the seams in the 1800s, a number of wealthy Jewish merchants moved to Scharloo. They had large mansions built in southern European style with patios and richly decorated facades. At the end of the 19th century Scharloo became the wealthiest part of town until, from the 1950s onwards, many families moved to the suburbs.

The neighborhood started to decline and crime increased. In the 1980s a vast renovation of Scharloo was initiated which led to the ultimate reward: Scharloo was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list as part of the historical center of Willemstad.

One of our participants spent her youth in the area. That is where she got this object. “I was born in the Scharloo neighborhood. I was very close with a merchant family who employed a lot of people in and around the house: a gardener, a cook and a nanny. I used to go see the nanny a lot. She came from Venezuela. Since she didn’t have any children she lived in a house right next to the house where she worked. I would sit in her rocking chair and chat with her. She couldn’t read or write.”

“She gave me this work or art. She had found a thread and hook and had made something to express herself.”