In/ Between Cities

What is currently the best place for seeing and making art in Europe? This seems to be a topical question for Rotterdam now that the home of the renowned Duende studios is closing, and the arts in general no longer seems to occupy a natural part of city life. In the Groene Amsterdammer art critic Anna Tilroe writes about the lure of the great art metropolises, and in the latest series of the TV art-cowboys ‘Artmen’ they ignore the Netherlands in their tour of major European cities. Is the artist’s life better in a foreign country? Is London nicer than Amsterdam, Maastricht or Rotterdam? Ben Roberts, programmer for Camden Arts Centre, London, and artist Jay Tan, who lives and works in London and Rotterdam, will be talking with Mariette Dölle, TENT’s artistic director, about the differences between London and the rest of the world, and the relationship of an art institution to its immediate surroundings and local artists.

Read out

Camden Arts Centre has established an internationally acclaimed programme of exhibitions, residencies, artists’ projects, and public events with artists such as Haroon Mirza, Nathalie Djurberg, Christine Borland, and Rene Daniels. Ben Roberts is Public Programme Organiser and is currently working on innovative approaches for Camden Arts Centre to support artists’ development as a critical engagement. He is responsible for the ways Camden Arts Centre offer audiences access to artists’ practise, process, and thinking; specifically in relation to the public and the residency programmes which he runs. In May, Roberts will be visiting a number of Dutch artists and arts organizations upon invitation by the Mondriaan Fund.

Jay Tan received her undergraduate degree at Middlesex University in London, and a Master of Fine Arts at the Piet Zwart Institute in Rotterdam (2010). Earlier this year she was awarded the C.o.C.A. commission with a solo exhibition, The Retired Engineer, at Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art and TENT. In her performances, sculptures, and installations Tan often makes use of hobby materials and techniques such as bread dough and paper mâché. She seeks the contrast between economically driven mass production and the individual’s desire to express themselves in handmade craftsmanship. She has recently exhibited in London, Munich, Antwerp, and Amsterdam. Jay Tan lives and works in Rotterdam and London.

Entrance: 3 euro Spoken Language: English