De Vesting in het Riet of De Waterkus

Jochem van den Wijngaard received a grant to develop new work. For this project, he explores our relationship to fossil fuels and the near-existential urge to dig. Within a network of tunnels, ladders, pipes, and pumps, a new image begins to emerge. What is the purpose of continuous excavation? In the project De Vesting in het Riet of De Waterkus, Jochem delves deeper into this question through material research, serving the creation of a new work in which sculpture and video converge in situ, in nature.

Jochem’s practice is interdisciplinary and experimental, with a research-driven approach at its core. The questions he poses are critical of our systems and culture. Art, in this context, offers a form of poetic transformation — a quality the artist achieves through his fascination with craftsmanship.