The exhibition “Portraits of My Demons” at the Kunstlinie in Almere explores the concept of “unheimlich,” the feeling of fear and alienation evoked by familiar spaces transforming into something strange. Artist Yoeri Teuben, also known as Gurb, confronts his personal demons by recreating his childhood bedroom and inviting visitors to face their own fears.

The exhibition delves into how spaces can become unsettling, drawing on examples from art, film, and architecture. The recreation of Gurb’s childhood bedroom includes a drawing of a black, eyeless figure, the “Shadow Man,” which represents the artist’s anxieties.

The concept of “unheimlich” originates from the work of psychiatrists Ernst Jentsch and Sigmund Freud, who explored the unsettling feeling of the familiar becoming strange and the revelation of suppressed emotions. Freud’s essay “Das Unheimliche” defines it as both not being at home somewhere and the revealing of what should have remained hidden.

The article touches upon the history of haunted houses, as well as references the contrast between safe homes turning against their residents was a favorite motif in the work of Hoffmann and Poe. Attics and cellars symbolize the forgotten, the past, dreams, and the subconscious, often harboring family secrets and hidden dangers.

Modern architecture’s attempt to eliminate “unhygienic” and old-fashioned elements, such as cluttered attics and damp cellars, may have inadvertently removed the sense of security and familiarity associated with home. The Ennis House by Frank Lloyd Wright, with its futuristic yet antique Mayan-like patterns, embodies this unsettling combination.

Contemporary architects and designers continue to explore the “unheimlich” in their work, creating spaces that evoke feelings of unease, disorientation, and fear. Examples include the “suburban nightmare,” “horror flat,” and buildings designed as “murder machines,” as well as the deconstructivist architecture of Peter Eisenman, Daniel Libeskind, and Coop Himmelb(l)au, who deliberately designed “disturbing architecture.”

Rem Koolhaas’ Villa Dall’Ava near Paris, analyzed in Françoise Fromont’s book “The House of Dr Koolhaas,” is presented as a surreal whole, referencing Le Corbusier, Hitchcock, and Salvador Dalí to evoke uncomfortable feelings. Architects often use light, color, scale, and materials to create dark atmospheres.

The exhibition aims to demonstrate that confronting dark feelings can be enriching, as Gurb discovered through therapy and by creating portraits of his moods. The exhibition concludes with a question on the wall: “What are you afraid of?”