Jan Hoek

Jan Hoek (b. 1984) is an artist and writer. He has photographed homeless Ethiopian men as kings and emperors, a heroin addict who dreams of being a model, Maasai living in the city in the way they wanted to be photographed themselves, and people he simply found through advertisements on the internet.

Jan Hoek’s quest for interesting models brought him to portray Boda Boda drivers as reckless real life action figures on motorbikes in front of Nairobi landscapes.

Bobbin Case

Bobbin Case is a 26-year-old avant-garde fashion designer born in Uganda, but based in Kenya. He dreams of creating costumes for movies and music videos. Some of his collections have appeared in Elle Magazine and on the BBC.

Melkweg Expo

Melkweg Expo is an exhibition space for contemporary photography and a platform for emerging artists, located in the heart of Amsterdam. With a focus on photography that explores identity, society and pop culture. Characterized by a distinctly playful and accessible approach, Melkweg Expo seeks to unveil high quality art – art that is innovative, engaging and inclusive.

Melkweg Expo’s main goal is to nurture and promote emerging talent and present them to a broad audience – from admirers of art, photography addicts, art students and self-taught artists, to the casual passers-by of the venue’s central location and music lovers surfacing from the crowd of a Melkweg concert. Melkweg Expo is part of Melkweg.

Melkweg stands for pop culture in the most broad of senses. Each year, hundreds of concerts, club nights, films and music films, theatre performances, expositions and multidisciplinary events together attract almost 540,000 visitors.

The venue is located in the only surviving factory building on the Amsterdam canal ring, a former sugar and, later, milk factory.

In the Melkweg, established names can be seen alongside new talent and emerging styles get the chance to reach a broader audience. The diversity of its programming and visitors have for years made the Melkweg a unique place.

United Photo Industries (UPI)

United Photo Industries (UPI) is a New York based nonprofit organization that works to promote a wider understanding of, and increased access to, the art of photography.

Since its founding in 2011, UPI has rapidly solidified its position in the public art landscape by continuing to showcase thought-provoking, challenging, and exceptional photography from across the globe. In its first seven years, UPI has presented the work of more than 2,500 visual artists in gallery exhibitions and public art installations worldwide.