Mr. Goodman: The Kiteman

The exhibition Mr. Goodman: The Kiteman presents a fascinating overview of kites from around the world. The selection of more than 300 kites comes from the collection of British collector Malcolm Goodman. He managed to acquire more than 500 examples during his travels to some fifty countries. The exhibition is presented in collaboration with The Kite Club.

The kite is one of the oldest flying objects ever made by humans. For centuries, different cultures have used kites for a wide variety of purposes: as ritual objects, weapons, or toys. During the Second World War, they were even used as radio antennas for downed aircrew. The collection of Malcolm Goodman brings together many of these surprising uses.

Singing, healing, fighting

Among the kites on display are examples that were traditionally hung above the bed of a sick person for three days. The line was then cut and the kite released, carrying the illness away on the wind. Others hum and sing: fitted with bamboo flutes and strings, they sound like musical instruments in the air.

The exhibition also features hand-painted Japanese kites created by master craftsmen who are recognised in their country as Living National Treasures. Another highlight is a group of large rectangular and hexagonal fighting kites, with which kite teams in Japan have been trying to cut each other’s lines for more than three centuries.

Malcolm Goodman

Collector Malcolm Goodman became fascinated with kites in the mid-1970s during travels through China and Japan. What began as curiosity grew into a lifelong pursuit. Goodman visited and organised kite festivals, travelled to more than fifty countries, and built a collection of around five hundred kites, most of them from Asia.

In 2003, Goodman and his wife Jeanette purchased an old bed and breakfast in Middleton-in-Teesdale, England, with the plan of turning it into a kite museum. Room after room was filled with kites, but permission to open the museum was never granted due to fire safety regulations. A photo series in the exhibition offers a glimpse inside this extraordinary house.

The Kite Club

The exhibition at Kunsthal Rotterdam is presented in collaboration with The Kite Club, consisting of still-life photographers Liesbeth Abbenes and Maurice Scheltens, creative director Peter Hebbing, and designer Bertjan Pot. They make their own kites and share their passion on Instagram. After meeting Malcolm Goodman, The Kite Club decided to document his collection in a publication and develop a travelling exhibition. The presentation at Kunsthal Rotterdam marks the first stop on this journey.