Faces of Rotterdam launches portraits of diverse Rotterdam on Diversity Day

Rotterdam is home to some 170 nationalities, making it one of the most diverse cities in Europe. Photographer Robert Tjalondo has already found almost all nationalities as part of Faces of Rotterdam. On Diversity Day, 7 October, all portraits and interviews will be festively presented at Theater Zuidplein.

At 19:00, the exhibition opens in front of the Zuidplein theatre with 10 cubes showing 40 portraits. The stories of those portrayed can be read or listened to via a QR code on the cubes or with the audio tour.

Tjalondo: ''We want to show who makes Rotterdam the city it is today. Rotterdam is the most inclusive city in Europe and we should be proud of that. We are also launching and hoisting an inclusion flag.'' During the unveiling, Tjalondo talks about his idea and his experiences of talking to all Rotterdammers. Many of the Rotterdammers portrayed will also be present to answer questions.

The inclusion flag will also be raised and poet Ishmail Kamara will recite an inclusion poem and cellist Marta González Pérez will play.

Travelling exhibition with film and podcast

After the opening outside, the portraits can be admired for a fortnight in Theater Zuidplein. A short film showing interviews with the Rotterdammers will also be shown there. A Rotterdammer from Guatamala tells how she saw our zebra crossings for the first time and a Rotterdammer from Burundi talks about lunch.

"The theatre exudes what Faces of Rotterdam stands for," says Robert Tjalondo. "It brings together thousands of visitors and makers from different countries, and the performances tell wonderful stories from countries that shed a different light on the negative preconceptions we sometimes have about them."

After theatre Zuidplein, the portraits and film will travel through the city to 't Klooster and LCC Romeynshof, among others. The portraits can also be seen in the municipality of Rotterdam's campaign: I am a Rotterdammer.