Maarten Bel bekijkt een ontwerp aan een tafel vol verf en tekeningen, omringd door bewoners van de Buurtcamping.

Local residents help shape the Glaspaleis tent in Heerlen-Noord

Artist Maarten Bel (Dordrecht, 1987) spent several days in Heerlen-Noord again at the beginning of August. During Chapter 3: In Conversation, he spoke with local residents from the Buurtcamping at Sportpark De Varenbeuk about an ambitious idea: a ‘Glaspaleis tent’ in Heerlen-Noord in 2027.

Maarten used the Buurtcamping to share his plans for the Glaspaleis tent and gather ideas. Local residents responded enthusiastically and were keen to help shape the plans for next year. The conversations generated all kinds of ideas for both the Glaspaleis tent and the Buurtcamping. From a fashion show featuring camping outfits – including a toilet-roll bag – and a film night with local films to a game of tag dressed as a mosquito, using large foam fly swatters.

Over the coming months, Maarten will continue the conversations. Several ‘camping dates’ are already planned, during which he will camp in residents’ living rooms to continue talking and exchanging ideas with them.

Een afbeelding van een Glaspaleis-tent en een bord met de vraag ‘Wat betekent de Buurtcamping voor jou persoonlijk?’ staan op het campingterrein.
Zelfgemaakte ontwerpen en ideeën voor SCHUNCK en de Buurtcamping hangen aan touwtjes in de tent.

From Buurtcamping to Glaspaleis and back again

Chapter 3: In Conversation continues Maarten Bel’s artistic exploration of Heerlen-Noord. Last year, he stayed at the Buurtcamping, where he met local residents during activities such as building pancake towers, making marshmallow sticks and – to the mild despair of some – playing his bagpipes.

These encounters later found their way into the Glaspaleis display case in Chapter 1: Greetings from Heerlen-Noord. During Frictions Festival, this was followed by Chapter 2: Together Again, in which visitors shared memories of the Buurtcamping during a special camping evening at the Glaspaleis.

Now Maarten is looking to the future. Together with local residents, he is exploring how SCHUNCK could have a presence in Heerlen-Noord next year in the form of a ‘Glaspaleis tent’. The conversations and ideas gathered this summer are the starting point for this.

Maarten Bel bekijkt een vel met ideeën terwijl bewoners rond een tafel tekenen en schilderen op de Buurtcamping.

Art as a starting point for connection

Maarten Bel creates art from everyday situations, often using humour as a way in. His projects are developed in collaboration with the people he meets. It is not only the end result that matters, but also the process of looking, talking and making things together. In Heerlen-Noord too, the stories, ideas and experiences of local residents form the starting point for the next phase of the project.

Maarten Bel en bewoners zitten rond een tafel vol tekeningen, verf en knutselmateriaal en werken samen ideeën uit.

This project is part of ArtBase, a pilot programme by the Mondriaan Fund in which SCHUNCK explores how the collection can also function outside the museum.