Since 1975, the Rijksmuseum has asked a Dutch photographer to research and record a current social topic under “Document Nederland.” Together, these photographs form an impressive visual history of the Netherlands from the late 20th century to the present.

For 2022, Emanuelson photographed the theme of Sustainability in the Netherlands and the six Dutch Caribbean islands: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, St. Eustatius, and St. Maarten.

What does sustainability look like in the Netherlands and the six Dutch Caribbean islands? Sharelly Emanuelson explored the relationship between humans and their environment in light of climate change and the impact of everyday actions on it. Emanuelson grouped the photographs in the exhibition around various themes in which human activities are always central. The photographs show how people deal differently with water management, erosion, and waste disposal. These consequences are large or small, temporary or permanent.

Visual artist Sharelly Emanuelson lives in Curaçao and works partly in the Netherlands. In her work, she brings together social issues. Through creating a film, video, sound installations, and photography, Emanuelson materializes her observations and research of everyday practices and relationships between art, culture, heritage & colonial remains. Emanuelson has received awards like the Charlotte Köhler Prize (2020), the Volkskrant Visual Arts Audience Award (2020) and the Black Achievement Spotlight Award (2018).