This year, I will experience Kunstschouw Zeeland in a different way.
Not as a participating artist, but as a visitor. And not by car, but by bike, moving through the Zeeland landscape from one art location to another.
Before the cycling route begins, it is already the landscape that pulls me back: dunes, wind, water and that particular Zeeland light.
I am genuinely curious.
After taking part in Kunstschouw Zeeland myself, at Schuur De Wilde near Scharendijke, something stayed. Not only the memory of the exhibition, the barn, the visitors and the conversations, but also the landscape around it. The wide fields. The wind. The water. The feeling that art does not stand apart from its surroundings there, but becomes part of the route, the villages, the farms, the harbour and the open sky.
Since my participation in Kunstschouw, Rob and I have kept our fishing boat in the harbour in Zeeland.
Staying a Little Longer in Zeeland
At first, it was connected to the exhibition period. Then, slowly, it became more than that. A place to return to. A rhythm. A small second ground under our feet.
We have become attached to the harbour life there. The boats, the tides, the strong wind across the water. And also the underwater world, which is much more alive than I ever realised. Tiny coral-like creatures, movement below the surface, unexpected colour and structure.
Rob has become completely familiar with the fishing rules by now and regularly comes back with large sea bass. And yes, the rules matter. If they are too small, they go back into the water.
That rhythm of looking, waiting, observing and returning feels close to my own practice. It is not only about catching something. It is also about paying attention.
Kunstschouw from the Other Side
This year I cannot participate as an exhibiting artist. Kunstschouw works with a rhythm in which artists can take part only once every three years, so the event keeps changing and new artists can be seen.
At first, that felt a little strange. Last year I was inside the exhibition rhythm, arranging work, being present, speaking with visitors and seeing my series in the space of Schuur De Wilde.
My goal! Visit Schuur de Wilde! – Scharendijke
This year I will stand on the other side.
I will look. Cycle. Visit. Notice what happens when I am not responsible for the work on the wall, but can simply move through the landscape and receive what is there.
Perhaps that is also good. Sometimes you need to return to a place without immediately filling it with your own work.
The Kunstschouw Bike Tour
From our harbour, we were asked whether we would like to join the Kunstschouw bike tour for a good cause.
The Soroptimistclub Schouwen-Duiveland organises the Soroptifiets this year in support of Vrouwenopvang Zeeland. A meaningful cause, and a beautiful way to experience the route.
So I will be cycling. With hopefully a lot of joy!
Across the Zeeland land, through wind, villages, art locations and open spaces. It may be a bit of a challenge, because anyone who knows Zeeland also knows the wind can be quite serious there. We feel that often enough in the harbour.
But I like the idea of moving through Kunstschouw by bike. Slower than by car. More exposed to the weather. Closer to the land. You notice more: a gate, a ditch, a barn, a sudden glimpse of work, the sound of tires on the road, the smell of grass, salt and mud.
I am very curious to see which artists, acts and locations are part of Kunstschouw this year.
Curious About What Will Appear
But I am also curious about something else: what happens when I return to a place where my own work was shown before, without showing work there myself?
Maybe I will look differently.
Maybe the landscape will answer in another way.
Maybe new images will start somewhere quietly, while cycling through wind and open land.
I will keep you posted.