Maria Vanhoof studied at the Social Academy in Belgium and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Tilburg. She developed artistry over the years. Vanhoof is a doer, a maker, a dreamer, a researcher and enjoys working with others. "I find it a challenge to spark imagination in order to see and develop other perspectives. Through my interest in art and participation, I have gained extensive experience working artistically with children and adults." During her residency in Horst aan de Maas, together with other artists, participation played the main role.
Can you promote cohesion in a neighborhood through visual art? How do you involve residents? In the project West wind force 12 residents of Horst aan de Maas along with twelve visual artists and many volunteers showed how to do just that.
During the months of June, July and August 2024, twelve artists were invited to participate in the project West wind force 12. Through an open call published in BK Information, I came into contact with Helmie van de Riet and Ine Schriever, the initiators of the project. Together with many volunteers, they are active in several "focus areas" in the municipality.
People are encouraged to participate in discussions about their future: what will the neighborhood look like in the future?
In the neighborhoods concerned, livability is under pressure. Residents are active on several fronts to restore the balance. Some of the houses are being demolished and that affects residents directly. People are encouraged to participate in discussions about their future: what will the neighborhood look like? Where can I live? What do I need to feel at home? Schriever and Van de Riet (both visual artists) ask the participating artists to contribute to the promotion of cohesion in the neighborhoods: dreaming together how things can be done differently.
Through an open call published in BK Information, I came into contact with the initiators of the project
Successively, two artists spent twelve days in two demolished buildings in the Norbertus neighborhood, which had been vacant in the meantime. The housing association, the owner, was enthusiastic about the idea and cooperated.
Together with an artist/photographer, I got to kick off the project. On the day we started, there was an official opening of the project at the House of the Neighborhood. This allowed me to taste the atmosphere and make the first contacts.
On site
As an artist, you can retreat to a demolition site for twelve days and work on a project in peace and quiet, but of course that was not the intention. It emphatically had to be a participatory project. Residents were informed and as many (local and regional) publicity channels as possible were used. The participating artists went out, talked to residents and were sometimes invited to their homes. New life emerged in the demolished houses; they became breeding grounds for the urge to create. And that aroused curiosity from young to old.
Participating artists went out, spoke to residents and were sometimes invited into their homes
Because of the location, there was a lot of room for freedom and chance: you could go about your business unhindered. Actually, the only restriction was that your successor also had to find a livable space. What was especially important was a large dose of flexibility. In addition, the design of the project required critical and creative thinking, problem-solving skills, embracing coincidence, rethinking, innovation. Everyone was allowed to interpret this in his or her own way. And that happened, partly because the initiators had invited very diverse artists: a sculptor, textile artist, photographer, painter, draughtsman, poet.
It starts with listening
In preparation for the project, I did a series of 'whisper sticks' created. An idea derived from a talking stick. Sticks found during my walks in the woods and rigged with items from my studio. They represent listening to your own inner voice, listening to the story of others. They form the beginning of an installation in a room at the front of the house. Slowly, a flow begins. By the worn-out doormat one morning I find a series of painted stones , a yard of iron wire, a piece of wood, a drawing, a box filled with everyday items. They were put there by some enthusiastic residents. With that,
the installation extends: from the floor to the walls, windows, ceiling, doors. A kind of spatial collage. I invite residents to build with me.
Painting
A week after my arrival, the living room was transformed into a painting studio. A group of four women came up with this proposal. Spontaneously, casual guests joined them. On the table I placed a large canvas tense. I invite participants to reflect on the concept of working together. At some point we are short of brushes. So let's start working with a stick. The interaction that ensues is about 'how much space can or may I take up from myself and/or the other person? And how do I communicate that?'
Dreumels
At the House of the Neighborhood, ladies meet every week to do crafts. I can tempt them to work together. My starting point is the typical "frayed edges" in my work. They recognize that as remnants that remain on the loom when a cloth is cut off. One of the ladies observes: those are 'dreumels' . We get to work and it is not easy, they would rather be busy with their beautiful embroidery, complicated knitting and crochet patterns. We do get plenty of stories about the textile history of Horst, carnival, stories of joys and sorrows. Literally and figuratively, the connection is palpable. Together with a participant we process the dreumels into a textile object of fabric remnants with parts of jewelry, amulets, rope, buttons, beads.
Tracks
Unexpectedly, but at the right time, an invitation comes from an elementary school in the neighborhood. Together with Ine, we set to work on the theme of traces in the area around the school. By frottering, textures and structures emerge with which the children continue to work. While drawing they visualize their own environment. Here and there they fantasize about the most diverse structures. The future generation at the helm. I hang the drawings in front of the window of 'my' house. Children recognize their work and promptly they are at the door. When invited, they walk in curiously and look around in amazement. A Syrian boy accompanied by his Moroccan friend tells about the road the family took to find a safe place in Horst.
Word and image
I was invited to participate in a leg meeting with representatives from the wk, the organization "for mekaar," the coffee morning and the craft group. In this way I heard many stories. Fragments, words from those conversations I have held and written down on pieces of torn paper flapping on the iron wire suspended from the ceiling; a new part of the installation. The west wind blows powerfully through it.
Open door
On August 24 and 25, the project concluded with an exhibition, which provided an overview of the works of the residents and the artists. The great interest showed how much the project has lived among the residents. Someone commented, "this project has given color to the summer at home. And what has become of the theme of living and home? I was able to experience how much attention there is for this theme and how alive it is. How it is worked on at different levels: from policy level to implementation in cooperation with the great commitment of volunteers.
Living together is an active concept
How nice it would be if the collaboration led to more of "feeling at home somewhere. In the frayed edges of my work, I have entered into encounters. Through storytelling and imagination, I have attempted to look inward and listen. The resulting works or images form traces of a social process. Horst is a place of together rather than alone, of connection. We experienced how visual art can play a role in this. A line from the song The Stone By Bram Vermeulen: 'I moved a stone in a river on earth'.
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