from left to right: beth wong, madeleine peccoux, silke riis, loly dollner, naomi hubert, alex murphy, jens huls.  hoto: ellen de haan

When grass isn’t cut, it grows taller and begins to clump together. A clump is a “bunch”, a “cluster”, a “grouping”. To clump means “to gather”. For two weeks the artists have been left uncut, growing into a clump in the middle of your garden, under your shoe, in your trees.

This group exhibition is the result of harmoniously merging-into and clumping-together, within the community of Piccardthof. Seven artists began as strangers, and came together for the opportunity to reside in an unfamiliar location, to build together and generate new artworks. This collective approach is marked by a shared desire for intentional naivety and radical positivism. They began to ask questions relating to the concept of leisure – what does it mean to relax, who among us can afford this privilege, and to what extent? Their intention was not to take a critical distance but rather to seek closeness: merging into the soil, leaving intimate messages on the notice board, listening to the botanical orchestra, sculpting with the birds, quilting ourselves together, and bluntly making friends.

LOCATION

clubhouse atv Piccardthof: Piccardtlaan 2, Groningen

53.19206118165694, 6.5400561630723795

meer info: www.piccardthof.nl

PROGRAM

OPENING       19 april 18:00 – 22:00

18.00 open

18.30 opening – clubhouse

19.15 reading of letter by Jens Huls

19.30 performance Lily Dollner – startpoint clubhouse

21.45 finishing act by the artists – clubhouse

22.00 end

EXHIBITION       20 april  11:00 – 18:00

12.30 performance Lily Dollner – startpoint clubhouse

16.30 performance Lily Dollner – startpoint clubhouse

                              21 april 11:00 – 18:00

guided tours (ongoing) – startpoint clubhouse

12.30 performance Lily Dollner – startpoint clubhouse

16.30 performance Lily Dollner – startpoint clubhouse

ABOUT PICCARDTHOF

Located at the edge of Stadspark in the city of Groningen, Piccardthof is a collection of allotment gardens with its own community of living beings, rules and ways of life.

Allotment gardens have a rich history in the Netherlands, going back to the 17th century. Their function underwent several changes from being known as a vegetable garden for commoners, to necessary produce providers in times of WWII – just like Piccardthof. Today, the role of the gardens has a focus on leisure activities.

At Piccardthof, the members meet regularly through social gardening events during which they take communal care of spaces such as the butterfly garden or the surrounding infrastructure.

Het resort wanted to dive into this special place because it is an example of a mini society with its own rules. What kind of community is this? What is a community? Who can be or is included? How do you take care of it? What are the (un)written rules?

From the start, we were welcomed with open arms and many garden owners opened their garden houses to the artists. This allowed them to immerse themselves in this community for a two-week period.

ABOUT MIDSEASON

Midseason is a program for starting artists. This year we teamed up with Into Nature, Kunsthuis SYB and Kunstpunt Groningen. Every year, there is an open call for this programme during the summer.

Midseason is made possible by: Gemeente Groningen, Mondriaan Fonds, Beringer Hazewinkel, Emmaplein Foundation