Haren has grown from a picturesque Flemish farming town known for its Belgian endives, with industries along the canal, into a veritable suburb of Brussels, with all the problems typical of a big city, albeit (for the moment) on a small scale. Haren is a bit isolated from the City of Brussels, situated in a triangle bounded by the canal, the Haachtsesteenweg and the Woluwelaan, criss-crossed by railway lines. NATO, the Brussels transit network (MIVB-STIB), the Belgian railways (NMBS-SNCB) and the giant prison occupy major sites in this neighbourhood. Since the remaining green spaces have been regarded as spaces for expanding residential dwellings, a succession of (social) housing projects of all shapes and sizes have sprung up. The Haren and Haren-South train stations are the only connection to Brussels and its surrounding municipalities. There are also two bus lines serving the area, making Haren difficult to reach from Brussels. In Haren, you have a sense of being literally isolated both in and from Brussels. The city is currently growing at a fast rate, but has almost no public facilities.
Information about the community centre
GC De Linde is one of the 22 community centres in Brussels that belong to the N22 network. The 22 centres translate and reinforce the existing cultural life in Brussels. They are first and foremost places where people, associations, citizens’ collectives, ideas and commitments can encounter each other. The community centres take a Dutch-speaking perspective as their starting point, but are open to the diversity of the neighbourhood where they are based.
De Linde is a small community centre with 3 meeting and activity spaces and 1 multi-purpose room. The theatre box, with a capacity of 100, is ideal for films and small-scale presentations.
De Linde has come to play a key community-building role in Haren. The neighbourhood is expanding rapidly, so it is essential for its residents and newcomers to the area and longstanding local Dutch-language associations and (new) committees and organizations to be able to “find” each other. There is a strong emphasis on participation and inclusion throughout all its activities, including the “theAter+” project. In addition, in recent years the decision was made to devote extra attention to programmes for children and families. Since a couple of years now, De Linde has also actively gone out into the neighbourhoods to connect with Haren residents and organize activities jointly with them. GC De Linde takes the local context as its starting point. The community centre has various spaces that can be used for all sorts of activities organised by associations, organisations, committed citizens and the centre itself. It is managed by volunteers from the neighbourhood and run by a small team of staff.
Task:
This project is in line with the idea of 100 years of garden districts. Garden districts were a sort of visionary attempt, in the 1930s, to model what social housing should be. At the moment, Haren has some 440 social housing units, and a further 120 new units are expected.
Haren also has a smaller garden district, with some 15 houses. This district is the starting point for the project through which we wish to link this district with all the other housing projects in the neighbourhood.
This process and the result will be undertaken in co-creation with Haren residents. Your work terrain is the housing blocks. The community centre can be used as the home base.
Profile
As an artist, you will design a co-creative trajectory:
- You will generate commitment on the part of the neighbourhood and residents, and act with respect for the participants.
- Together with the neighbourhood you will develop a strong end result supported by the neighbourhood.
- You will make a personal commitment to the neighbourhood yourself and will review the various facets of co-creation: the idea, the process as well as the end result are supported by the participants.
- You will be working together with the community centre staff. You will jointly guide the process.
- You will commit yourself both physically and mentally to the neighbourhood, so as to get to know all its facets.
- The whole project must remain within the predetermined budget.
Budget
There is a total budget of 19,500 euros for the project. This includes all costs.
Timing
Applications will be accepted via the registration form until Monday 03/01/2022 inclusive.
First selection based on the statement of interest and CV: 12 January 2022
Second selection: 21 January 2022
Jury presentation: week 01/02/2022
Work period: March, April , May, June
Deadline
10 January 2022
Contact person
Jan Op de Locht, jan.opdelocht@vgc.be;
Apply via the registration form