Diva
The famous Rotterdam museum Kunsthal has recently started displaying an exhibition named DIVA, diving into the rich history of the term and the powerful women history tends to overlook.
Whitney Houston performing at Wembley Arena, London, 5 May 1988 Photo © David Corio, available via Kuntshal Rotterdam. © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.
At the end of October, the museum Kunsthal in Rotterdam announced the start of a 6-month-long exhibition that sparked a lot of people’s excitement. Aptly titled DIVA, the exhibition dives into the history of this term, from 19th-century female opera singers to present-day pop icons. The term DIVA (originally meaning goddess) has, throughout its existence, been praised, rejected, challenged, and reclaimed, having sometimes had to fight against the negative misogynistic connotations attributed to it. This exhibition tells a mesmerising story of women who have had a huge influence on the music scene and culture in general and who’s historical contributions have very often been overlooked. As a museum-lover who is also deeply interested in anything that has to do with feminist history, I couldn’t wait to step foot into Kunsthal and experience this for myself.
Photograph by Raandoom, captured at the DIVA exhibition in the Kunsthal museum in Rotterdam. © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.
The story starts by introducing you to the very first context in which diva became a widely used term - in the opera world of the 19th century. Female opera singers of that time were incredibly talented and highly regarded in all circles, but there was also another side to being a female celebrity of that time. Since opera singers diverged from the typical life path meant for women and thus had much more freedom and independence, they were inevitably often criticised for not staying true to their womanly duties. However, this propelled a lot of them to start using their status to fight for gender equality as much as they could, and they are often overlooked as important players in contributing to the feminist wave.
In the exhibition, you can read the stories of opera divas such as the British Shakespearean actress Ellen Terry and Dutch-French stage legend Sarah Bernhardt, who both played a crucial role in furthering the first feminist wave. Among their beautifully preserved costumes and shoes, you’ll be transported into a completely different world, full of glamour, freedom, and struggle in equal measure. The exhibition is made even more immersive with the addition of headphones that play different opera numbers from this time in each room you enter.
Stepping further into the space, you’ll enter the world of famous and absolutely iconic movie actresses from the 19th and 20th centuries that you might already know (especially if you’re an avid Drag Race viewer, which proved more educational in this context than I ever thought it could). A screen showing famous scenes featuring Mae West, Clara Bow, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor, Josephine Baker, and Merilyn Monroe lets you dive into the enchanting world of black-and-white movies and actresses who changed women’s experiences in the film industry forever. Their iconic one-liners are plastered in the vitrines around you, along with their unforgettable movie-set outfits.
After marvelling at the deep historical significance of different divas that contributed to the feminist movement and the lives of women in the spotlight, you are brought back to the present along with the more recent past when it comes to divas that represent true cultural staples. From Cher, Tina Turner, and Diana Ross to Madonna, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Amy Winehouse, and more, you have probably never shared a room with as much powerful female energy before. Most of the room is filled with their extravagant stage outfits, but you are also invited to learn more about their lives and careers through the stories told in the vitrines around you. You can also immerse yourself deeper into their music through the interactive headphones that play whichever music video is on the screen in front of you.
At the end, there is also a fun and interactive part of the exhibition that lets you unleash your inner diva by walking on a red carpet, and then designing your own diva outfit that will be shown on a digital magazine cover in front of you. It is absolutely impossible to leave DIVA without feeling a surge of powerful feminine energy and maybe a healthy dose of female rage that will inspire you to look into feminist history even more in the future and to admire all the divas in your life (no matter if they are celebrities or just your mom and best friend). If you want to be emboldened and inspired, head to the Kunsthal until the beginning of March and experience the DIVA magic for yourself.
