WILLEMSTAD – A controversial bronze statue of Curaçao freedom fighter Tula is being put up for sale after spending more than half a century in the Netherlands without finding a permanent home. The family of Dutch artist Toos Hagenaars has given up hope of securing a permanent museum location for the work.
The two-meter-high statue was created by Hagenaars in Curaçao in 1973 as a tribute to Tula, who led the major uprising of enslaved people on the island in 1795. The sculpture was later cast in bronze in the Netherlands.
From the beginning, however, the work generated controversy, particularly because Hagenaars depicted Tula naked and because a white Dutch artist had created an image intended to represent one of Curaçao’s most important historical figures.
More than 50 years later, those same questions continue to determine the statue’s fate.
Museum aan de Aa in Groningen recently examined whether the sculpture could be incorporated into a museum setting. Although an external adviser saw possibilities, the museum ultimately decided not to include the statue in its permanent presentation.
Museum director Nicolette Bartelink told Dutch newspaper Trouw that the decision was influenced heavily by the views of Curaçao individuals and organizations that regard the sculpture as a racist stereotype. The museum has not ruled out displaying the statue as part of a temporary exhibition.
The Groninger Museum and the future National Slavery Museum in the Netherlands have also not included the work in their collections.
With the museum route apparently exhausted, Hagenaars’ family is now considering selling the statue through an auction house or directly to a private collector, foundation or company.
In 2023, it briefly appeared that the sculpture might finally return to Curaçao. Hagenaars announced that she wanted to donate it to the people of the island.
Activist Gibi Bacilio, who had previously opposed the statue, eventually supported bringing it to Curaçao and suggested possible locations in Willemstad.
The proposal nevertheless triggered renewed resistance. Fundashon Museo Tula declared in August 2023 that the statue was not welcome, arguing that the naked representation was racist and degrading and did not reflect Tula’s historical significance as a national hero.
Political movement Kousa Promé also opposed bringing the sculpture to Curaçao. It argued that Tula was not represented in a dignified manner and that Curaçao artists should have a prominent role in creating monuments honoring the national hero.
The Curaçao government ultimately decided not to bring the statue to the island.
Hagenaars consistently defended her artistic decision to portray Tula naked. According to the artist, the nudity was intended to symbolize a man who had cast off his chains and everything imposed upon him. In her interpretation, nudity represented freedom, rebirth and independence.
Critics view the imagery differently. They point to a colonial tradition in which Black people were portrayed as naked, primitive or exoticized. Fundashon Museo Tula has argued that the sculpture cannot be separated from that historical context.
The controversy has increasingly transformed the sculpture from a proposed monument into a historical object in its own right.
Dutch journalist Lodewijk Dros explored that history in his 2023 book Tula, een beeld van de slavernij. The book traces the sculpture from its creation in Curaçao to its long period in storage in Winschoten and examines how attitudes toward the work changed alongside wider debates about colonialism, slavery and Tula’s place in history.
The planned sale now creates fresh uncertainty about where the sculpture will ultimately end up. Hagenaars’ family reportedly hopes to find a buyer willing to preserve not only the artwork but also its historical significance.
A sculpture originally intended to become a monument honoring Tula has instead become a symbol of a debate lasting more than half a century over who should represent Curaçao’s national heroes and how they should be portrayed.