MUSICAL CHAIRS

Dunkirk, April 29, 2026

It has been dry for several days in Dunkirk. Today the weather was warm but also windy as we arrived at the distribution area, where the ground itself was bone dry. Here people had already formed long lines, waiting patiently for the voluntary organisations to arrive. We saw temporary shops being re-erected, having been dismantled during an earlier eviction by the police. It appeared that people had not been able to access basic supplies.

In the @medecinsdumonde psychosocial activities van, young women, teenagers and young men waited to see the doctor, while others gathered around the world map laid on the ground outside. We agreed collectively to bring selected materials, and to bring them out slowly. Alongside the map, Connect Four was a staple, followed by the bricks - one young woman immediately saying ‘I want to build my future home.’

The postcards, as so often is the case, provided access to a range of conversations, particularly about birds and animals. It was however Francis Alÿs’s postcard of Musical Chairs * that seemed to have universal resonance - everyone, from Somalia, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Palestine, France, Belgium, to the UK - confirming that they had played it as a child.

We were struck by the poignancy of musical chairs as a metaphor as it seemed to connect with people’s actual daily challenges in this setting - missing a place to sleep or arriving just too late to see the doctor, and competition for limited resources generally.

With all of the difficulties that people experience, and the challenges they carry, we still had many playful discussions today. Standing at the edge of the world map, people also found their places - where they came from, where they had a feeling of belonging, and where they hoped to find that again.

* Francis Alÿs: Childten’s Games #12, Musical Chairs. Mexico, 2012.

Words by Miriam Usiskin, Bobby Lloyd & Johannes Maertens.