Whispering Garden
May 7 to August 14, 2022
Project content:
'What kind of world do you want to live in?' This question is central to Arcadia's entire program. What legacy will you leave to the world?
For 100 days, Leeuwarden's city center was bathed in greenery. Between May 7th and August 14th, more than 1,000 trees walked through the city. This "walking" forest, set in motion by hundreds of participants, gave the trees—and thus nature—a voice. With a "Bo(o)mvol" program of exhibitions, performances, and meetings, publications in various online and offline magazines, newspapers, and daily newspapers, coverage of the theme on TV, radio, in council meetings, and even a lawsuit for the rights of nature, Bosk has drawn attention to the need to rethink the relationship between humans and nature.
If trees can walk, we can change
Arcadia is a 100-day, highly diverse cultural program created by thousands of Frisians, from international artists to people from villages and neighborhoods across Friesland.
Through Campus Connect, we have teamed up with our partners and students from NHL Stenden and local artists to create a BOSK side program.
The Whispering Garden
The Whisper Garden reflects Bosk's walking forest. This hidden spot hosts several projects and activities, divided into the Green Oasis and Blue Oasis categories. For example, you can take a whisper boat along a route along the pot margin, complete with a guide and equipment, and you'll find various works of art, some of which you can even contribute to!
A place in the middle of the city, but without the city noise. A place where the city noise is drowned out by the sounds of the trees, which tell the story of the Potmarge!
Besides the fact that the artists are all local makers, some of the projects also involve students from various programs at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences.
The programme line includes a number of projects:
Sunrise and Sunset Inner Voice Tour:
Featuring a whisper boat, Nature & Art street art, and a participation tree. Inner Voice is an art project created by sound artist Tristan Visser and David Marcel de Jong, designed to help everyone on a whisper boat pause for a moment and reflect on their relationship to the soundscape of their surroundings.
Nature & Art – Whispering Garden Exhibition. Artist Roy Schreuder, along with students from NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences, created several large works, which you can find in the Whispering Garden. And who knows, you might even have a chance to contribute your own work, as they'll be finishing it on-site! So relax on the grass and watch the artwork in progress!
Whispering Garden Participatory Tree
The Participatory Tree is an artwork in collaboration with Teodora Roka, in which sound, nature, and the people within and around it interact. You can see this artwork change: through the changing weather conditions, but also through your presence, whether inside or outside. Pull the strings and experience a completely different sound, but revisit it in, say, two months and discover more leaves and different sounds! In total, you can see this change throughout the 100 days of Arcadia.
Partners : Snoek Pure Green, NOON, Wikkel House, Wetsus, SUP School, Municipality of Leeuwarden, Bosk, Green Office, Van Hall Larenstein, MICA, NHL Stenden