The Inflatable Refugee

Coinciding with the current migration crisis from East to West, Schellekens & Peleman have started work on The Inflatable Refugee. A large inflatable adult male figure that represents a seated refugee.

The Inflatable Refugee gazes blankly into the distance. Has he arrived at a safe haven or will he be refused and be sent from whence he came? His sheer size allows him to look over and beyond us and keep watch on the horizon, not limited by borders or documents. It makes him inescapable, undeniably present.

Do we see him as a human or as a problem? Is his presence an opportunity or a threat, devoid of human characteristics? Schellekens & Peleman proportionally enlarged the ‘Inflatable Refugee’ to match the extreme reactions his arrival in the Western world evoked. His size represents how we perceive him.

Schellekens & Peleman have chosen to create this inflatable figure from the same material as the boats, used by human traffickers to cross the Mediterranean Sea, are made from. It’s too fragile to withstand the waves of the sea, making the passengers on these boats extremely vulnerable.

On November 16th Schellekens & Peleman presented their floating installation in the San Marco Bacin.