New Ground was set up in 2006 as a meeting place for young European artists. For its next edition, however, the festival has sharpened its focus: New Ground will be a combined festival and seminar, with an explicitly political and engaged character.
Why ‘engaged’? The answer might sound dramatic, but this makes it no less true: it is because there will always be a need to struggle against injustice. At Landgoed De Horst in Driebergen, near Utrecht, we will be asking whether art can take part in that struggle.
Politically and socially engaged art is ‘in’. This spring I visited small and large conferences on the subject in Vienna, Glasgow and Berlin, and I met some interesting people.
At the same time it struck me that the debate on art and engagement is usually held in a rather non-committal way. The discussion programme in De Balie, for instance (a great place!) stays safe; it is not difficult to keep the material at arm’s length.
This is why some artists are saying that you have to make the audience part and parcel of an experience before they are affected or can change their minds. Other artists are saying that art has to intervene in real life.
I want to show some examples of this in New Ground. Since I don’t want it to be non-committal, we have asked De Baak to develop a sound training programme for the event, one that really makes us look at ourselves. At the same time I want it to be more than just navel-gazing, so we have asked Instituut Clingendael and Partizan Publik to create a simulation game which squarely confronts us with everyday political reality. I also want the debate to go beyond the safety of the artistic domain, so through De Baak we have business partners actively involved in the programme. Finally, I would like to see the whole thing yield some concrete plans, so the training course is also tailored to this purpose.
We have invited six speakers, and to ignite the debate we have expressly chosen contrasting perspectives. The embarrassing irony of global celebrities The Yes Men encounters the raw, confrontational art of Artur Zmijewski. Ives Maes’ biodegradable landmines meet the charming, almost esoteric protests of Silke Mansholt. Robin Deacon’s solo spoken word performance shares the bill with Signa Sørensen’s group projects, which dispense entirely with the boundary between performer and audience. The interventions of Jonas Staal, of Geert Wilders Werken fame, meet the rowdy activist art of The Vacuum Cleaner. Everything will be put into perspective by the grand dame of Dutch performance art, Moniek Toebosch. Eric de Vroedt, Boukje Schweigman, Borut Separovic and Martijn Engelbregt will also be present.
The whole event will take place from 27 to 30 September during New Ground in Driebergen, as part of the Vrede van Utrecht programme. You can take part in the training course for young artists (<40), or attend the lectures and other programme elements separately. The training course costs €295 (including hotel, meals etc). A day ticket for the public programme, which is held between 13.00 and 22.00 on Friday and Saturday, costs €35 (€25 for students).
Artists from all over Europe have already put their names forward: clearly, engagement is alive and kicking. An increasing number of artists feel that something should be done – and that their own work might help to make it happen.
I would like to warmly invite you, too, to come to Driebergen. Why do I attach so much importance to your presence? First and foremost because I think it is important to stay in a dialogue with one’s peers. I believe there is something, however hard it is to describe, which binds our generation. Secondly, I know how rich an experience it can be to discuss shared topics with peers from other countries, to look deeply into other people’s motives and backgrounds. Thirdly, I invariably find it enormously inspiring to see new people at work and to share their insights. Fourthly, I can’t think of anything more important than to talk frankly and honestly with one another in a safe, almost intimate setting; everyone should have the opportunity to express themselves, whether they are artists or not. Fifthly, intensive training courses and seminars – and even performances – work for me as a kind of meditation: they give me renewed clarity of insight. Lastly, I actually believe that is important that we keep thinking about making a better world – however old-fashioned and idealistic that might sound.
Take a look at the programme on www.nieuwegrond.com. I hope to see you there!
Warm regards,
Jeffrey
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