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THE HAGUE
WELCOMES PEOPLE
Community initiative by The Hague Creators, inviting local and international makers
to respond to the theme of welcome, humanity and belonging.
Francine van der Wansem
This video was made around the phrase “The Hague welcomes people.”
The idea was to show different people writing the same message, to represent the many people in The Hague who believe in openness and community. The video combines these handwritten moments with shots of the city itself.
I specifically chose to film hands instead of faces, because this can be a sensitive topic and therefore not everyone feels comfortable being on camera. This way, people could still be part of the project in a personal way.
The video is meant as a positive message about The Hague as an international and welcoming city.
The idea was to show different people writing the same message, to represent the many people in The Hague who believe in openness and community. The video combines these handwritten moments with shots of the city itself.
I specifically chose to film hands instead of faces, because this can be a sensitive topic and therefore not everyone feels comfortable being on camera. This way, people could still be part of the project in a personal way.
The video is meant as a positive message about The Hague as an international and welcoming city.
Silvia & Gil - Flok Studio
We are Flok Studio, a brand design duo based in The Hague, Netherlands. Founded in 2023 by Silvia (aka Shive Design) and Gil (aka... Gil), the studio was born from our belief that branding is more than just a pretty logo and a colour palette. Our mission is to help brands find the right visual communication, creating identities that feel authentic and connect naturally with the people they’re meant for.
We moved to the Netherlands over eight years ago, one from Italy and the other from Portugal. What started as separate journeys eventually brought us together through a shared passion for design, creativity, and visual storytelling.
Over the years, The Hague became our home and the place where our vision took shape: a creative venture built on curiosity, collaboration, and meaningful design.
We moved to the Netherlands over eight years ago, one from Italy and the other from Portugal. What started as separate journeys eventually brought us together through a shared passion for design, creativity, and visual storytelling.
Over the years, The Hague became our home and the place where our vision took shape: a creative venture built on curiosity, collaboration, and meaningful design.
De Sheng Lim
I’ve known Mansoor for several years, first as a colleague and later as a friend. Like many asylum seekers, he has an incredible story of resilience and hope. Mansoor left his home country of Afghanistan to come to the Netherlands, where he pursued a master’s degree. Before he completed his studies, he watched in horror as the Taliban overran Kabul, the capital. His wife Rana and two young daughters were left stranded while he was still in the Netherlands. His ordeal continued for several more years as he navigated the Dutch asylum process. Meanwhile, his wife and daughters eventually made it to Pakistan but remained stuck there for years. After almost five years of separation and against all odds the family were reunited in November of this year (2025). As they find their bearings in a new land, a new chapter begins for them.
Alireza Parpaei
The sea may rage, the wind may rise,
but the dunes stand firm through stormy skies.
We do not flinch when fear draws near,
We stand and say: you are welcome here.
but the dunes stand firm through stormy skies.
We do not flinch when fear draws near,
We stand and say: you are welcome here.
Fleur Augustinus
Human Experience Designer & Illustrator - making complicated topics more visually appealing and accessible for the wider public.
Maya Schade
I am a graphic designer living in the Hague. In this series, I approached “The Hague welcomes people” through ideas of shared space, movement, and human presence. portraying the city as a living tapestry created by its people.
Maya Schade
I am a graphic designer living in the Hague. In this series, I approached “The Hague welcomes people” through ideas of shared space, movement, and human presence. portraying the city as a living tapestry created by its people.
Sona Sahakian
Concept of my photo series ‘’Back in Time’’ by Sona Sahakian
In my photo series "Back in Time," I intended to portray the everyday life of the American street musician Chuck Deely, who lived in The Hague, The Netherlands. I would like that people from other cultures and countries to get to know him as well, because many people who lived in The Hague can identify with his songs, and they loved the admiration of this artist when they saw him often on the streets of Grote Marktstraat and Central Station, The Hague. He was a well-known and recognized figure in The Hague, which stays in your mind all the time. By making this photo series, I would like to preserve his spirit and soul, which many people appreciate when they’re listening to his music; the way of his being and artistic endeavors, where memories transform the experience of human existence, the awareness and transformation of time, where a trace of the past breathes new life into the present, which is transient, nostalgic, and temporary.We always carry the past with us as memories, which are a glimpse of our soul and consciousness. This enables us to discover unforeseen experiences, insights, and creativity in our lives, where everything is interlinked. This series is founded on my personal memories of encounters with a street musician, which I employed in my work to create images that reflect the emotions of the moment and the essence of the musician's persona. It is remarkable how an individual can pursue their dream by performing music on the streets and earning a living from it. In this project, I have utilized various photographs I have taken, digitally blending several images to create a synthesis of experiences, feelings, thoughts, and imagination, resulting in a nostalgic and poetic ambiance where I strive for each work of art to lead a life of its own, where intangible time, memory, and transience come together and are united. This series can be seen as a collective memory, as Deely was a remarkable figure with his performances in the streets.
Sona Sahakian is a visual artist, born in 1996 in the Netherlands. She graduated from the Department of Visual Arts at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. Her works include paintings, drawings, collages, photographs, installations, and films (video art).In recent years and up to the present, she has held solo exhibitions and participated in various group exhibitions and projects, both within the country and internationally.
Her artworks focus on the search for an inner experience of time, the dialogue between people and nature, and the encounter with your real self, where memories are made experienceable in the shape of fixation and transformation. The transience, the cycle of human existence - life, death and rebirth - plays an important role in this; this transforms our reality and strengthens our human consciousness. In her creations , she incorporates multiple disciplines , which she amalgamates and blends into a singular image, termed mixed media, or as she herself describes it, "Mixing Palette." She considers this an ongoing process where diverse images are constantly reshaped into new forms and contexts , reappearing in various manifestations. In her art she wants to stimulate people's imagination and sensory experiences in which the traces of the past are revived in the present , which remains anchored in her memory and thus enriches her personal history. In this way she hopes that people can make an inner journey by really feeling and discovering for themselves what the treasure chest of their existence is.
In my photo series "Back in Time," I intended to portray the everyday life of the American street musician Chuck Deely, who lived in The Hague, The Netherlands. I would like that people from other cultures and countries to get to know him as well, because many people who lived in The Hague can identify with his songs, and they loved the admiration of this artist when they saw him often on the streets of Grote Marktstraat and Central Station, The Hague. He was a well-known and recognized figure in The Hague, which stays in your mind all the time. By making this photo series, I would like to preserve his spirit and soul, which many people appreciate when they’re listening to his music; the way of his being and artistic endeavors, where memories transform the experience of human existence, the awareness and transformation of time, where a trace of the past breathes new life into the present, which is transient, nostalgic, and temporary.We always carry the past with us as memories, which are a glimpse of our soul and consciousness. This enables us to discover unforeseen experiences, insights, and creativity in our lives, where everything is interlinked. This series is founded on my personal memories of encounters with a street musician, which I employed in my work to create images that reflect the emotions of the moment and the essence of the musician's persona. It is remarkable how an individual can pursue their dream by performing music on the streets and earning a living from it. In this project, I have utilized various photographs I have taken, digitally blending several images to create a synthesis of experiences, feelings, thoughts, and imagination, resulting in a nostalgic and poetic ambiance where I strive for each work of art to lead a life of its own, where intangible time, memory, and transience come together and are united. This series can be seen as a collective memory, as Deely was a remarkable figure with his performances in the streets.
Sona Sahakian is a visual artist, born in 1996 in the Netherlands. She graduated from the Department of Visual Arts at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. Her works include paintings, drawings, collages, photographs, installations, and films (video art).In recent years and up to the present, she has held solo exhibitions and participated in various group exhibitions and projects, both within the country and internationally.
Her artworks focus on the search for an inner experience of time, the dialogue between people and nature, and the encounter with your real self, where memories are made experienceable in the shape of fixation and transformation. The transience, the cycle of human existence - life, death and rebirth - plays an important role in this; this transforms our reality and strengthens our human consciousness. In her creations , she incorporates multiple disciplines , which she amalgamates and blends into a singular image, termed mixed media, or as she herself describes it, "Mixing Palette." She considers this an ongoing process where diverse images are constantly reshaped into new forms and contexts , reappearing in various manifestations. In her art she wants to stimulate people's imagination and sensory experiences in which the traces of the past are revived in the present , which remains anchored in her memory and thus enriches her personal history. In this way she hopes that people can make an inner journey by really feeling and discovering for themselves what the treasure chest of their existence is.
Robin Cox
I'm working on a series which is not finished yet, but I wanted to share a past conversation from the Good Place podcast which highlights the theme very well.
Please see a link to the conversation below.
Please see a link to the conversation below.
Jeanette Ruiz
Jeanette is a professional philomath and closet creative. She has recently fallen in love with all things collage. This work is representative of The Hague and what she believes is the foundational spirit of the city, a city open to all.
Sirun Tang
My name is Sirun Tang. I am a Chinese visual artist and photographer, and a newly arrived migrant artist based in The Hague. I moved to the Netherlands five months ago, but my relationship with The Hague began before that. Over time, through repeated visits and return journeys, I slowly came to know the city from different angles: its seaside, winter streets, tramlines, modern architecture, historic facades, public spaces, changing weather, and quiet everyday moments.
The works I am submitting are part of a visual diary of my first encounters with The Hague and my first months of living here. In these photographs, I try to capture the city as I have experienced it: the openness of the sea and the pier, the softness of snow, the glow of windows at night, reflections after rain, the rhythm of trams moving through the city, and the way people, architecture, light, and culture meet in shared public spaces.
As a newcomer, these moments have meant a great deal to me. They allowed me to see the beauty of The Hague not only as a visitor, but as someone beginning to imagine a future here. Each image became a small reason to look closer, to stay longer, and eventually to choose this city as a place to settle. Through photography, I was not only documenting The Hague; I was learning how to belong to it.
For me, “The Hague welcomes people” is not only a statement about arrival. It is about the quiet process of being received by a city: walking through unfamiliar streets, discovering beauty in ordinary light, recognizing traces of many cultures, and feeling that one’s own memories and identity can also have a place here.
These photographs are my first conversation with The Hague. They are a record of how the city welcomed my eyes, my curiosity, my cultural background, and my desire to create. Through them, I hope to share The Hague as I see it now: open, layered, international, intimate, and full of moments that make people feel they can begin again.
The works I am submitting are part of a visual diary of my first encounters with The Hague and my first months of living here. In these photographs, I try to capture the city as I have experienced it: the openness of the sea and the pier, the softness of snow, the glow of windows at night, reflections after rain, the rhythm of trams moving through the city, and the way people, architecture, light, and culture meet in shared public spaces.
As a newcomer, these moments have meant a great deal to me. They allowed me to see the beauty of The Hague not only as a visitor, but as someone beginning to imagine a future here. Each image became a small reason to look closer, to stay longer, and eventually to choose this city as a place to settle. Through photography, I was not only documenting The Hague; I was learning how to belong to it.
For me, “The Hague welcomes people” is not only a statement about arrival. It is about the quiet process of being received by a city: walking through unfamiliar streets, discovering beauty in ordinary light, recognizing traces of many cultures, and feeling that one’s own memories and identity can also have a place here.
These photographs are my first conversation with The Hague. They are a record of how the city welcomed my eyes, my curiosity, my cultural background, and my desire to create. Through them, I hope to share The Hague as I see it now: open, layered, international, intimate, and full of moments that make people feel they can begin again.
Mira Geels
My name is Mira and I am 28 years old. Before coming to the Netherlands, I lived abroad for most of my life. When I came to the Netherlands for university back in 2016, The Hague was the first city that I arrived in as a student and it welcomed me with open arms. I am so glad and thankful to have spent my student years in The Hague!
Ghaydaa
I’ve been in The Hague for almost four years; still figuring out what home means, but slowly making it one. In a time when division feels louder than kindness, everyone deserves a place to land.
Mariona Forutny Jané
I'm Mariona Fortuny Jané, I'm a film photographer enthusiast and I have been capturing The Hague through my eyes and my experiences for the past three years. As someone who moved from Barcelona and was new to living away from home, I believe these years have shaped me and transformed me in a plethora of ways. It was exactly this very thought that encouraged me to translate these feelings into something more tangible. Thus, with my work, I portray the different sides that this city has brought to me personally, day to day. These shots include scenic views, iconic places in The Hague, behind the scene pictures and personal shots of my loved ones enjoying their experience here.
THE HAGUE WELCOMES PEOPLE
The Hague Welcomes People is a community creative initiative by The Hague Creators, inviting local and international makers to respond to the theme of welcome, humanity and belonging.
Inspired by recent conversations in The Netherlands and The Hague around migration and asylum seeker centres, the project brings together visual work from creatives who want to show what kind of city The Hague can be: open, diverse and human.
Through design, illustration, photography, video and other creative formats, the initiative celebrates The Hague as an international city shaped by people from different cultures, backgrounds and stories.
THE HAGUE WELCOMES PEOPLE
An initiative by The Hague Creators
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