Hill of beans, project at De Kapeltuin

Last year I got a suprize email inviting me for a kind of residency at De Kapeltuin, a community garden, in Breda (NL). 

They saw a ricecarpet by me in the very beginning of my still short career. Contemplating how to proceed with my ricecarpets, my temporary ephemeral organic carpets, after my projects in England, it come at the perfect moment. I didn't just wanted to make a work on location, I wanted it to grow on location. I made a plan and happily it was excepted.

The carpets that I normally make are made with materials I just buy at Toko, supermarkets and organic stores. In Cambridge and London I experimented with waste from pubs and given materials from homes. Resulting in different, interesting works on maybe even more interesting locations (see "Quid Pro Quo: Negotiating Futures" and "Practices of Sustainability, Étude #1 and Étude #2").  

How can I make my work more sustainable, is the question I'm asking myself. So I'm making my own materials. I'm planted the seeds and with the harvest I'm making my temporary carpet.

So sowing the seeds, reaping them and taking care of the plants till harvest. A seed to seed project.

To stretch this cycle even further, the seeds I use for the temporary carpets, are selected on the quality of the seeds. So people can take the seeds with them during the Harvest festival and plant them again.

They not only take a seed with them, but also a little bit of history about De Kapeltuin. Every seed together tells the whole story. So in this way, people get invited to share. 

It's more than a harvest to eat. It's a heirloom, captured in one seed. 

Last week my seeds went in the ground. I will share the growth of my project here, starting with a little photo-serie of my empty plot. From 1 February till 24 April 2015. The last photo is of Koen and Freek placing the bicycle wheel on a stake in my plot. The ending of the empty plot, but the true start of my project 'Hill of beans'!

On Sunday 14 June 2015 you can visit De Kapeltuin during the Haagse Beemden Kunstroute and I will be there to tell you about 'Hill of beans'. 

More information on www.haagsebeemdenkunstroute.nl/sabinebolk (in Dutch)

 1 February 2015

 16 February 2015

 21 March 2015

 18 April 2015

 24 April 2015

Freek & Koen placing the 'Fietswiel op staak'

Rangoli carpet at Reclaim the seeds

On the 28 of February 2015 I made a little temporary carpet at Reclaim the Seeds. This seed exchange and protest in one was held in Driebergen (NL). In a little parade of minds alike, I arrived at the locations which was gorgeous.

I made my little carpet in the Cityplot tent. This great organization from Amsterdam is an inspiring group of people who give workshops in growing your own food, seed saving and worm farms. I went to a seeds saving workshop to prepare for my 'Hill of beans' project at De Kapeltuin in Breda (NL) and really got a lot of inspiration from it.

For my carpet I used as a pattern logos of the companies that try to patent seeds and are polluting our planet with pesticides. The materials I used where to be used the next they to make a 'Rangoli-soup'. A perfect little protest against the people who are making our food dangerous for use and our surroundings.

Next to making the little carpet, I went collecting beans from my upcoming project 'Hill of beans'. The beans I shopped, I selected not only on their pretty colours and patterns, but also on the way they grow and the ability for me to save the seeds. I did a lot of reading, and since then didn't stop learning about planting beans, ecological gardening, the history of De Kapeltuin, seed saving and other kitchen garden related facts.

Tomorrow, Thursday 14 May 2015, I'm going to plant my selection of beans at De Kapeltuin. 

You can visit De Kapeltuin to see my project grow or check out my website for updates!

Reclaim the Seeds at Driebergen

Preparing the Cityplot stand

 Making my Rangoli carpet

Selecting beans for 'Hill of beans'

Ready to make the soup!

With this post I would also like to thank Ann Doherty of Cityplot for inspiring me to make 'Hill of beans' and letting me join in at Reclaim the Seeds. 

Thanks Reclaim te Seeds, see you next year for sure!

 For more:
- Article in Dutch "Reclaim the Seeds in Driebergen druk en geslaagd"
- Website De Kapeltuin www.dekapeltuinbreda.nl
- Website Cityplot www.cityplot.org