Kunst&Zwalm 2009
Stefaan Dheedene / Luc Ewen / Martine Feipel & Jean Bechameil / Jerry Frantz / Christian Frantzen / Roel Jacobs / Mark Manders / Rik Moens / Sophie Nys / Roland Quetsch / Kelly Schacht / Tamara Van San / Dimitri Vangrunderbeek
Kunst&Zwalm is a biennial exhibition of contemporary art in the Zwalm region, the gently undulating countryside in the heart of the Flemish Ardennes. It confronts the work of both Belgian and foreign artists with the particularities of the rural environment.
Established in 1997, Kunst&Zwalm provides a unique, integrated and environmentally sustainable model of artists working directly with rural communities in homes, villages and workplaces. Vzw Boem (Kunst&Zwalm) operates in the Flemish Ardennes, a priority area for sustainable tourism development located in the Province of East Flanders, at a short distance from the city of Ghent.
As usual, Kunst&Zwalms biennial events involve collaborations with different European regions and countries. In recent years, the organisation developed partnerships with the French and German speaking regions of Belgium, but also with organisations in France, Spain and Holland. This year, Kunst&Zwalm focuses on artistic connections within the Benelux.
Along the 9 km exhibition track, each artist chose an exceptional location to execute an in situ intervention. Internationally renowned Dutch artist Mark Manders, for instance, re-creates the intimate atmosphere of an artist’s studio in a barn, displaying his drawings and clay sculptures in an intricate, seemingly improvised manner. Young female artists Kelly Schacht, Tamara Van San and Sophie Nys took the project as an invitation to trigger new forms in relation to the magnificient landscape, offering strong insights on the idyllic environment. The invitees of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg develop artworks that involve or confront the local village and its inhabitants with their personal lifestyle and history.
Organisation: vzw Boem; Boembeekstraat 32; Zwalm 09 360 65 20; boem@telenet.be