De Kunstkar van Nieuw-West visits Maydan Festival May 2022


De Kunstkar van Nieuw-West /
ACCESS Pilot: The Art-Cart of Nieuw-West
Background and Concept
It was my intention to create an object that would attract attention and serve as an intervention, interrupting everyday life and stirring up conversations. Through my past fieldwork I had been introduced to a variety of interesting cultural initiatives and through the Art-Cart I intended to highlight the arts and culture that Nieuw-West already has to offer. By making arts and culture more accessible and bringing people into contact with the already present creativity in the district, I hoped to broaden people’s notion of arts and culture and give them a sense of agency over creative practices within their neighborhood. Coffee and tea, and a snack from a local shop would be served from within the cart to strike up conversations.
This project consisted of two participatory parts; designing and building the Art-Cart at Social Design workshop Noorderhof and the interaction that took place when the cart took to the streets of Nieuw-West, where artworks were exhibited and conversations with locals were brought about. Throughout the timeframe of the project, I was in contact with many artists and organizations from the district to collect miniature artworks to exhibit or flyers and brochures to hand out.

On May 3 & 4 De Kunstkar was part of the Maydan Festival celebrations on Plein 40-45, connecting local cultural programs to passersby as well as offering two workshops by local artists; a one-on-one performance of Monoah’s Economic tarot reading and an upcycling crafts workshop for children hosted by Kim Kind’s Creations The Art-Cart of Nieuw-West is the title of a pilot project realized in the period of October 1st – December 12th, 2021, in the district of Amsterdam Nieuw-West. Commissioned by Amsterdam’s city council, the project is part of the European Access network dedicated to contributing to more inclusivity in arts and culture in various European cities. 
    This short-term pilot tested whether a more inclusive cultural climate could be achieved within the district. Furthermore, sociology students from the VU (Vrije Universiteit) of Amsterdam would follow the project and write their own reports and recommendations.

    The art-cart was built in three days at Social Design Workshop Noorderhof (Buurtwerkplaats Noorderhof). The designing and building of the cart were offered as workshops and for this I approached two local artists to supervise the process. Maus Bottin, currently working as a film-prop designer, and Alice Sprascio, a design-lab graduate, both studied at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam and live and work in a nearby broedplaats. The cart was built in collaboration with the artists and the volunteer team from Buurtwerkplaats Noorderhof.

The building of the cart took place on November 10, 11 and 12, 2021, and was mainly constructed from secondhand material. The fee paid at the buurtwerkplaats covers the use of their workshop and materials, but also gives the volunteers who participated in the project the possibility to receive a new tool to add to their toolbox.