https://seasonalneighbours.com seasonalneighbours Mon, 27 Oct 2025 13:15:13 +0000 https://seasonalneighbours.com en https://seasonalneighbours.com/About-us Fri, 01 Oct 2021 12:15:48 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/About-us <img width="1536" height="2048" width_o="1536" height_o="2048" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/715166ec6fb5681ba7b3620351d1356fc26cee85e06f78211b113d32a64b1c23/Credit-Jonathan-de-Maeyer.jpeg" data-mid="248271615" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/715166ec6fb5681ba7b3620351d1356fc26cee85e06f78211b113d32a64b1c23/Credit-Jonathan-de-Maeyer.jpeg" /> Ciel’s Farm, Photo by Jonathan De Maeyer 2024. About us Seasonal Neighbours examines the ongoing material and social transformations of rural life, particularly by paying attention to agricultural practices, the food chain, climate, and seasonal labour migration. The collective, based in the EU, brings together artists, designers, chefs, writers and architects whose practices touch on aspects of seasonality, temporary cohabitation, cultural memory, and practices of belonging. We share a methodology of learning-by-doing and strive for a practice of neighbouring*. The collaboration results predominantly in site-specific interventions, rituals, audiovisual works and other forms, engaging us with places and their inhabitants. The collective regularly exchanges with other stakeholders, researchers, and organisations. For more information on our extensive network of friends and colleagues, please visit: Friends︎︎︎.* Neighbouring, some collective thoughts in development a social negotiation you cannot be a neighbor without the presence of an other different than family, than friends also between countries you don’t choose your neighbours about boundaries and thresholds people, animals and plants there is a distance there are dependencies a practice of caring together (like in Norway when a village displaces a barn together) neighbourships a methodology inhabiting each others’ spaces reassessing the living spaces you build a relationship with something actions that are not planned uncontrollable the discomfort that comes with it it has to do with presence understanding needs giving space a question the possibility of something like “fragmented neighboring”? when constantly moving in and out of spaces longing for a neighbour rituals of arrival (washing the floor by hand as a practice of re-familiarizing) seeking for knowledge about where you ‘land’ aspect of care - of prolonging a relationship (wood table maintenance) <img width="1344" height="898" width_o="1344" height_o="898" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b8453b9bdc37ef36e9430347cc56334ca2d780c860335be73de142295ecdcf6a/Screenshot-2020-10-05-at-17.06.11.png" data-mid="120416789" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b8453b9bdc37ef36e9430347cc56334ca2d780c860335be73de142295ecdcf6a/Screenshot-2020-10-05-at-17.06.11.png" /> <img width="1842" height="1097" width_o="1842" height_o="1097" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d7d57f64957eccaedf530b5762a5bf4692c1b7ed77589d5d6ccc6ce6d081b415/groepsfoto.jpg" data-mid="120416788" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d7d57f64957eccaedf530b5762a5bf4692c1b7ed77589d5d6ccc6ce6d081b415/groepsfoto.jpg" /> <img width="3638" height="2430" width_o="3638" height_o="2430" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/71a42e3883989b9182cf91959ae239c3671f3c07b23ad9c845f98f8f9f70d198/SeasonalNeighbours_SacredFirePot.jpg" data-mid="210424519" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/71a42e3883989b9182cf91959ae239c3671f3c07b23ad9c845f98f8f9f70d198/SeasonalNeighbours_SacredFirePot.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6e938edfe40f971e81d2299ab3818012deca014879b0e51d147a95634b5a47ef/_DSC1542.jpg" data-mid="210523460" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6e938edfe40f971e81d2299ab3818012deca014879b0e51d147a95634b5a47ef/_DSC1542.jpg" /> HistoryCultivating dreams in the rural (2027 - ...) A new chapter announces itself. Every collective member will again search for and affiliate with a place in Europe’s countryside. In 2020, we visited conventional farms. This time we are seeking out places where people are experimenting with alternative forms of agriculture, energy supply, hospitality, solidarity, and democracy... We are partnering up with LOV2030 (Leuven Cultural Capital of Europe) and Jubilee (a platform for artistic research). This will result in ongoing research publishing, yearly exchanges in different localities and a presentation in Leuven in 2030. Seasonally Neighbouring (2024 - 2026) From 2024 onwards, Seasonal Neighbours started to function as a real artist collective, with many temporary collaborators and seven active members.Biographies︎︎︎ We explored our shared practice of neighbouring, amongst others, by building up relations with five places across Europe: Tibucani (RO), Beauwelz (BE), La Fourragère (Marseille)(FR), and Ulbeek (BE). Each of these places is connected to a member of our group who holds a specific role or relationship to the land—one of agency rather than ownership. While each location has unique characteristics and challenges, they all provide fertile ground for exploring themes of cohabitation, fractured belonging, and (post)seasonality. The results of these explorations have been presented at&nbsp;Kunst&amp;Zwalm, Watou Art Festival, and processed at the workshop hosted by&nbsp;Rural Relations Writing Club, which led to the Corrupt publication. Our Invisible Hands, a collective research endeavour (2021-2023) In 2021, the coronavirus measures made the dependency of our food markets on migrant labor painstakingly visible. Supported by z33, Maximiliaan and Ciel launched a call to artists, designers, and social scientists to join the research project. An international 16-member group was formed consisting of Karolina Michalik (PL), Claire Chassot (FR/CH), Collectif dallas (Salomon and Camille) (FR/BE), Vanessa Brazeau (CA), Anastasia Eggers (GE/R), Mona Thijs (BE), Ewoud Vermote (BE), Ioana Lupașcu (RO), Ines Marita Schaerer (CH), Ode Windels (BE), Pia Jacques (BE), Yacinth Pos (NL), Jonathan de Maeyer (BE), Maximiliaan Royakkers (BE) and Ciel Grommen (BE).&nbsp; All participants started with a fieldwork experience as a seasonal laborer somewhere in an agricultural farm in Europe. A collective exchange of two years resulted in 11 different research trajectories that manifested in various in-situ interventions around Flanders and the Netherlands. Trajectories︎︎︎ All have been presented in "Our Invisible Hands", an exhibition in z33, center for art, design and architecture in Hasselt (Belgium) from January until April 2022, curated by Ils Huygens and Annelies Thoelen.&nbsp; Exhibition︎︎︎ The publication, "Seasonal Matters, Rural Relations", published by Onomatopee in June 2024 and edited by Ils Huyghens and Anastasia Eggers, draws connections between the different trajectories of “Our Invisible Hands” in a variety of graphic formats. Besides these, interviews and essays link them to interesting voices in the larger debate about the contemporary countryside, inspiring for a new phase in our collective collaboration. Book︎︎︎ House for Seasonal Neighbours, early exploration (2017-2018) Seasonal Neighbours was founded in 2017 by Ciel Grommen. Her fascination for unusual forms of cohabitation led to a dialogue with Polish and Bulgarian seasonal workers in her hometown, Borgloon; a group that makes up 1/5th of the population there in the summer. This personal experience, which started from working side-by-side during the fruit-picking season, was further explored in 2018. Together with Maximiliaan Royakkers, they realised the artistic intervention: “House for Seasonal Neighbours”, and with Dieter Leyssen, academic research was explored on seasonal migration in Europe. <img width="1600" height="900" width_o="1600" height_o="900" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bbf0ae8ae1be0a6b0749de9a1c8e9930650963dcf3eaf08acb40daa06a773cb8/IMG_6760.jpg" data-mid="239368034" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bbf0ae8ae1be0a6b0749de9a1c8e9930650963dcf3eaf08acb40daa06a773cb8/IMG_6760.jpg" />Ciel’s Farm 2024. Contactseasonal.neighbours@gmail.cominstagram︎︎︎facebook︎︎︎ For our individual contacts, interests and backgrounds: Biographies︎︎︎ Support The collective projects of Seasonal Neighbours have been made possible by the generous support of the Flemish Government, Z33 and Grensverleggers (a scheme to support cultural collaborations between parties in Flanders, the Province of North Brabant, the Province of Limburg and the Province of Zeeland). Within the individual trajectories, we partnered with organisations like Ar-Tur, Kunstenplatform PLAN B, Fransmansmuseum Koekelare, Vrije Radio Wellen, witloofmuseum Kampenhout, CC De Bogaard Sint-Truiden and we received the financial support of Vocatio Fund, the Creative Industries Fund NL and many crowdfunders... &nbsp;<img width="496" height="204" width_o="496" height_o="204" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" data-mid="121263100" border="0" data-scale="16" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/496/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" /> &nbsp; <img width="512" height="512" width_o="512" height_o="512" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e40764c3618fada9fea1c2460cb45802310f427fdd5e27ce020120774ef826ee/android-chrome-512x512-1.png" data-mid="121262809" border="0" data-scale="6" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/512/i/e40764c3618fada9fea1c2460cb45802310f427fdd5e27ce020120774ef826ee/android-chrome-512x512-1.png" />&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <img width="500" height="500" width_o="500" height_o="500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8ee1b08491c57b2fb8168dd735a40917437ee7021e5378ba935006baf5a07288/logo-deburen.png" data-mid="205834662" border="0" data-scale="8" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/500/i/8ee1b08491c57b2fb8168dd735a40917437ee7021e5378ba935006baf5a07288/logo-deburen.png" />&nbsp; <img width="500" height="500" width_o="500" height_o="500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b6296073a95ade9f0a8012dbf34dfa5ce52a3fd12e7dec57af4d49d19681261c/logo-provincie-zeeland.png" data-mid="205834660" border="0" data-scale="10" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/500/i/b6296073a95ade9f0a8012dbf34dfa5ce52a3fd12e7dec57af4d49d19681261c/logo-provincie-zeeland.png" />&nbsp; <img width="500" height="500" width_o="500" height_o="500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d828cebee47202f3a292487069826c83732776618b39267d0411adcf7c4f4b46/logo-provincie-limburg.png" data-mid="205834661" border="0" data-scale="9" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/500/i/d828cebee47202f3a292487069826c83732776618b39267d0411adcf7c4f4b46/logo-provincie-limburg.png" /> <img width="500" height="500" width_o="500" height_o="500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1aab18eb8cb8de6450c465b486c410f380d60b76cf51251304c4c3223811dec1/logo-provincie-noord-brabant.png" data-mid="205834659" border="0" data-scale="10" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/500/i/1aab18eb8cb8de6450c465b486c410f380d60b76cf51251304c4c3223811dec1/logo-provincie-noord-brabant.png" /> https://seasonalneighbours.com/Somewhere-here-somewhere-there Tue, 14 Oct 2025 13:22:55 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Somewhere-here-somewhere-there <img width="3860" height="4825" width_o="3860" height_o="4825" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fb240d7addd49d2aeb6c058b9b0742de9e1f99bf8e18cf62e1ff9187ab0b164d/copyright-Jonathan-De-Maeyer.jpg" data-mid="239367718" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fb240d7addd49d2aeb6c058b9b0742de9e1f99bf8e18cf62e1ff9187ab0b164d/copyright-Jonathan-De-Maeyer.jpg" /> image by Jonathan De Maeyer Somewhere here somewhere there Contributors: Ciel Grommen, Maximiliaan Royakkers Ciel Grommen and Maximiliaan Royakkers are architects by training and through family ties, connected to the world of agriculture. When Ciel’s brother-in-law asks for help renovating housing for foreign seasonal workers, they take on the task with open-hearted curiosity. Through conversations with developers, policymakers, social workers, and farmers, they map a landscape shaped by deep economic forces. But when they try to understand what it means to live in these accommodations, the silence of the workers reveals a blind spot — and the need to ask different questions. In this project — a hybrid between documentary and dialogue — Ciel and Maximiliaan use models, film, and scenographic elements to recount their fieldwork journey, from Haspengouw to Brussels, to Romanian villages and back again. What initially seemed like a simple design question gradually unfolds into fundamental inquiries about living and working, the livability of our culture, and what it means to be home in a farmyard. Stage, video &amp; scenography: Ciel Grommen &amp; Maximiliaan RoyakkersArchitectural research assistance: Tim Martens, Tom Van Laer&nbsp; Feedback &amp; dramaturgy: Simon Allemeersch, Camille Louis, Nancy Vansielegem, Griet Roets Production: Jubilee Co-production: Decoratelier, C-takt in collaboration with: LUCA school of arts with the financial support of: the Flemish Government https://seasonalneighbours.com/Haeivers-Picking-Song Tue, 14 Oct 2025 14:02:43 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Haeivers-Picking-Song <img width="1288" height="966" width_o="1288" height_o="966" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ea2cf9850b4ecff2936909f654f1bd6358615ac41b2e17fdeb44da9a0346b788/IMG-20250619-WA0006.jpg" data-mid="239370369" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ea2cf9850b4ecff2936909f654f1bd6358615ac41b2e17fdeb44da9a0346b788/IMG-20250619-WA0006.jpg" /> <img width="2112" height="1136" width_o="2112" height_o="1136" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5ed1f3741c9b213edc2a74fa2a57a71b3aa88100b06e058a24539e60fd8b1d22/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.28.52.png" data-mid="239370418" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5ed1f3741c9b213edc2a74fa2a57a71b3aa88100b06e058a24539e60fd8b1d22/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.28.52.png" /> <img width="2114" height="1466" width_o="2114" height_o="1466" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/37563de51492cdd1b3cc161f38233017447031c1ea556a36fd36e87bcc7bdd65/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.28.59.png" data-mid="239370419" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/37563de51492cdd1b3cc161f38233017447031c1ea556a36fd36e87bcc7bdd65/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.28.59.png" /> <img width="1042" height="1390" width_o="1042" height_o="1390" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/db9e5f345f31e5aa4701b350deb8532f8bf35ce6034e3a0fe7e0bc09915d6b85/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.29.08.png" data-mid="239370420" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/db9e5f345f31e5aa4701b350deb8532f8bf35ce6034e3a0fe7e0bc09915d6b85/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-16.29.08.png" /> Haeivers &amp; Picking Song Contributors: Mona Thijs, Stijn Segers &amp; TOUR On a warm Thursday evening, the House for Seasonal Neighbours transforms into a concert venue at the small church in Haren. Overlooking orchards and farms, this idyllic setting offers the perfect backdrop to celebrate the start of summer in the village. The evening’s guests are TOUR, a seven-piece band led by Stijn Segers. They perform Haeivers, a folk album sung in the Zutendaal dialect, exploring the longing for one's home village. In collaboration with spoken word artist Mona Thijs, some of the lyrics are reinterpreted and translated, allowing the transnational experiences of nearby seasonal workers to resonate through the music. Moreover, Mona Thijs’ “Picking Song”, a text which resulted out of the project “Playlist van de pluk”, is set on music. After all, is that village of origin just a few miles away, abroad, or perhaps somewhere in the past? Maybe this shared sense of nostalgia and homesickness is what truly connects us all. More info: MoMeNT︎︎︎ https://seasonalneighbours.com/Wandering-sheep-Pig-s-field-Kunst-Zwalm Wed, 28 May 2025 08:46:39 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Wandering-sheep-Pig-s-field-Kunst-Zwalm <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b6c72f21f92b4ee721e9e133d9f80d297bbc889946bd989ee156e8fe73531fdc/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_4.jpg" data-mid="239489321" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b6c72f21f92b4ee721e9e133d9f80d297bbc889946bd989ee156e8fe73531fdc/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_4.jpg" /> <img width="5784" height="3861" width_o="5784" height_o="3861" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bdee6b44d69e06091286bc5da60896c5d7946121180612c88692e442aee66262/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_2.jpg" data-mid="239489412" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bdee6b44d69e06091286bc5da60896c5d7946121180612c88692e442aee66262/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_2.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4857a901c3948ebe8c96bf815b1fe94869a02b46017eb6dd23c1ebf583a42403/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_3.jpg" data-mid="239489413" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4857a901c3948ebe8c96bf815b1fe94869a02b46017eb6dd23c1ebf583a42403/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Wandering-Sheep_3.jpg" /> Wandering sheep, images by Jonathan De Maeyer <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a512330d971f3b3950ab84b634804d0b02bc0a022be72a3a55eb4be2134b422a/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field.jpg" data-mid="239489311" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a512330d971f3b3950ab84b634804d0b02bc0a022be72a3a55eb4be2134b422a/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field.jpg" /> <img width="4016" height="6016" width_o="4016" height_o="6016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f71911ac4a242d666dc528e39fb0a0abbab3a450382486e273c0573385716348/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_3.jpg" data-mid="239489312" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f71911ac4a242d666dc528e39fb0a0abbab3a450382486e273c0573385716348/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_3.jpg" /> <img width="4016" height="6016" width_o="4016" height_o="6016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b960bfff8cb2e14f28ef7fa89154de980a579bc36ce8026fcce4223f2f1824ec/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_21.jpg" data-mid="239489314" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b960bfff8cb2e14f28ef7fa89154de980a579bc36ce8026fcce4223f2f1824ec/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_21.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/373a23f5ce75e92c1736f521b8c35c71fa4d0683f5b2e968c7c2cda2c19333fd/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_25.jpg" data-mid="239489313" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/373a23f5ce75e92c1736f521b8c35c71fa4d0683f5b2e968c7c2cda2c19333fd/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_25.jpg" /> <img width="4016" height="6016" width_o="4016" height_o="6016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5e9e900065614830703395a642a65df4d028c43fbd90c9c0aab822fd315b09d4/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_8.jpg" data-mid="239489317" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5e9e900065614830703395a642a65df4d028c43fbd90c9c0aab822fd315b09d4/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_8.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2f0896b4a3fdbff1772f13699a183b0791d8ef7312965b4ef9fb3ac0a6018441/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_12.jpg" data-mid="239489316" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2f0896b4a3fdbff1772f13699a183b0791d8ef7312965b4ef9fb3ac0a6018441/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_12.jpg" /> <img width="5659" height="3778" width_o="5659" height_o="3778" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/cc7da9f5589ade894b9cd57ae13df14ea44b7a89bdf8d309058596194b679ba6/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_13.jpg" data-mid="239489315" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/cc7da9f5589ade894b9cd57ae13df14ea44b7a89bdf8d309058596194b679ba6/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_13.jpg" /> <img width="4016" height="6016" width_o="4016" height_o="6016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5cd9dff392119014389385951f39cff78fdb714e67644c79a6ad968e93315076/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_30.jpg" data-mid="239489318" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5cd9dff392119014389385951f39cff78fdb714e67644c79a6ad968e93315076/jonathandemaeyer_SN_Pig-s-Field_30.jpg" /> Pig’s field, images by Jonathan De Maeyer Wandering sheep / Pig’s field&nbsp; Contributors: Anastasia Eggers, Jonathan De Maeyer, Claire Chassot, Ciel Grommen &amp; Maximiliaan Royakkers Kunst &amp; Zwalm is a biennial art route in the Zwalm region, organised by BOEM vzw. For the 2025 edition, the programme was put together by PLAN B. They decided to focus on the theme of soil. Three collectives, including Seasonal Neighbours, were invited to conduct local research for a year. This group of artists was gradually supplemented with other collective artists. Inspired by the ubiquity of horses along the trail, we&nbsp; began to take an interest in the concept of “horsification”, a dynamic in the Flemish countryside where farms and their adjacent agricultural lands are turning into residential villas and horse meadows, causing land prices to rise sharply. At the same time, the few operative farms still existing in the area house a much larger number of animals that remain invisible in the landscape. Which animals have access to land? Guided by this question, we observed which animals roam freely and where their access is restricted. In conversation with farmers and residents of Zwalm we discovered that the motivations to these boundaries are varied. From hygiene to protection from predators, each draws its own line across the land. Yet, animals make their presence known in different ways. The fleece of a sheep on the barbed wire, the sound of pigs coming from the stables, an occasional nest in a tree. It formed the basis for two spatial and sound interventions that reveal unbalanced ways of accessing land:&nbsp; Wandering sheep 24 circles of wool on a line crossing 24 fences, 1 roaming sound piece Sheep have escaped from their enclosures to return to their pastoral nomadic life. They have formed an unruly herd that crosses fences and woods, out of sight. A few traces remain – wool caught in the wires and the sounds of a shepherd trying to guide them. Pig’s field a room of 25 square meter in a corn field, a space-filling sound piece, an open farrowing cage for pigs, a nest from paper feed bags and a floor of manure&nbsp; Pigs, although invisible in the fields of Zwalm, are strong architects of the landscape: their manure fertilizes the fields, and the maize is grown to feed them. Even on farms, they keep trying to build: when the time comes for them to give birth, they look for material to build nests. Documentary traces left in the maize field invite acknowledgement of their presence, their role, and their needs in shaping the landscape. This piece is made with the help of the pigs of the Zwalmbeekhoeve.&nbsp; More information: website Kunst&amp;Zwalm︎︎︎ https://seasonalneighbours.com/The-Scope-Of-Stories-Tracing-Vernacular-Landscapes Mon, 27 Oct 2025 13:15:13 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/The-Scope-Of-Stories-Tracing-Vernacular-Landscapes <img width="8268" height="7087" width_o="8268" height_o="7087" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fce14571599ad2bc46c2cd1d3e7970cb6477832abddb8203678d3379d07e3d96/jonathandemaeyer-thescopeofstories.jpg" data-mid="239909687" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fce14571599ad2bc46c2cd1d3e7970cb6477832abddb8203678d3379d07e3d96/jonathandemaeyer-thescopeofstories.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d83a8f20254713fb8421feeb7ec89d574749bb9847ad01dc57d59c04b4b744ae/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer133.jpg" data-mid="239909695" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d83a8f20254713fb8421feeb7ec89d574749bb9847ad01dc57d59c04b4b744ae/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer133.jpg" /> <img width="5883" height="3927" width_o="5883" height_o="3927" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fccd904552565a3d85414b41de1086650a1a05a83278fe9cf7d2ba699601549c/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer160.jpg" data-mid="239909696" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fccd904552565a3d85414b41de1086650a1a05a83278fe9cf7d2ba699601549c/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer160.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c53576c2f7d44a31c7f310c00e6474c5b8bf2ea36780f8c7709780ea89b8cc67/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer129.jpg" data-mid="239909694" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c53576c2f7d44a31c7f310c00e6474c5b8bf2ea36780f8c7709780ea89b8cc67/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer129.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bf7262669555ae51ffdea8c7f1061940cbb006e7815c7805cc29cd03e0bf1494/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer128.jpg" data-mid="239909693" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bf7262669555ae51ffdea8c7f1061940cbb006e7815c7805cc29cd03e0bf1494/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer128.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b7c2e1b4ad98223c8175ded9d3e4f4a950666284938bb87f8592e0195cc6ad16/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer101.jpg" data-mid="239909691" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b7c2e1b4ad98223c8175ded9d3e4f4a950666284938bb87f8592e0195cc6ad16/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer101.jpg" /> <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0167ee6854d19d0dc13d6172453fa0849aee641a1dd8be08addc496b43e36620/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer123.jpg" data-mid="239909692" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0167ee6854d19d0dc13d6172453fa0849aee641a1dd8be08addc496b43e36620/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer123.jpg" /> <img width="5993" height="4001" width_o="5993" height_o="4001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ab27c5295f6dad5bdc5af1d7348b631a82213d2de5112a89f078d72ad92ff603/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer026.jpg" data-mid="239909690" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ab27c5295f6dad5bdc5af1d7348b631a82213d2de5112a89f078d72ad92ff603/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer026.jpg" /> <img width="5922" height="3953" width_o="5922" height_o="3953" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/71d19389b4c82691ce74a458ba5b7bd4b7b0fac49d00b4e5fd2d47a9a6beab19/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer19.jpg" data-mid="239909689" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/71d19389b4c82691ce74a458ba5b7bd4b7b0fac49d00b4e5fd2d47a9a6beab19/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer19.jpg" /> <img width="5993" height="4001" width_o="5993" height_o="4001" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4d66ffcd4b4ca8798df1c8ff92231af503ea747a77a23647a8e9d9da81669432/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer017.jpg" data-mid="239909688" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4d66ffcd4b4ca8798df1c8ff92231af503ea747a77a23647a8e9d9da81669432/TheScopeofStories_jonathandemaeyer017.jpg" /> images by Jonathan De Maeyer The Scope of Stories, Tracing Vernacular Landscapes Contributor: Jonathan De Maeyer ‘The Scope of Stories, Tracing Vernacular Landscapes' is an exhibition that assesses the state of artistic movements in rural areas. Jonathan De Maeyer invited artists who work in both rural and urban settings, always focusing on human connections, ecology, food, and agriculture. Through fiction and documentary that questions the human perspective, the complexity and reality of the countryside are woven into the stories it houses. With works by: Lara Bongard &amp; Annelotte Lammertse, Claire Chassot, Tim Theo Deceuninck, Jonathan De Maeyer, Anastasia Eggers, Ciel Grommen, Rural Relations Writing Club &amp; Ioana Lupascu, Maximiliaan Royakkers, Erien Withouck, Jana Vasiljević, Julie Van Kerckhoven, col­lec­ti­ve dinner hosted by Jana Joanna Milbou — Curator: Jonathan De Maeyer. in collaboration with ︎︎︎Kunstenplatform PLAN B and with the support of the city of Ghent. Location: BLANCO Platform - Coupure Rechts 308, 9000 GentOpening: friday 16th may, 18:00 Grondstroom, dinner conversation with Thessa Krüger and Wout Barbier in collaboration with Green Office Gent and Jagers &amp; Verzamelaars: wednesday 21th may 2025, 18:00 ︎︎︎Rural Relations Writing Club: saturday 24th may 2025, 11:00 - 13:00 Collective diner hosted by Jana Joanna Milbou: saturday 24th may 2025, 18:00&nbsp; Exhibition: Saturday 17th and Sunday 18 may 2025, 10:00 - 18:00from Wednesday 21th may until Sunday 25th may 2025, 14:00 - 18:00 https://seasonalneighbours.com/Rural-Relation-Writing-Club Wed, 07 May 2025 11:54:14 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Rural-Relation-Writing-Club <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1b52180a829b5db31f14c10dbc2b825832c14fe796cfaa03ab1d54fa73d02015/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-sesh-1.jpg" data-mid="232896987" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1b52180a829b5db31f14c10dbc2b825832c14fe796cfaa03ab1d54fa73d02015/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-sesh-1.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bb2b40aaa14cb126289c8a20585de00d987ce761dfe7cc643efc6871c5593c06/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-Sesh-2.jpg" data-mid="232896995" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bb2b40aaa14cb126289c8a20585de00d987ce761dfe7cc643efc6871c5593c06/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-Sesh-2.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8af915cf1872f0c7406b23331fd6c16a61d43ac2a8ca47a4f25052758c9a927e/Rural-Realtions_writing-group---3.jpg" data-mid="232896996" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8af915cf1872f0c7406b23331fd6c16a61d43ac2a8ca47a4f25052758c9a927e/Rural-Realtions_writing-group---3.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2599aab7d03613cb2a2beb076aa2e3ddfa5b1305adc6ed39efa0c179af63eb2c/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-4.jpg" data-mid="236177267" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2599aab7d03613cb2a2beb076aa2e3ddfa5b1305adc6ed39efa0c179af63eb2c/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-4.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/78a5fb6aa0add6496016a4509c791172c7adf2d82c45123e904bf52fc4c1c5b0/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-6.jpg" data-mid="236177262" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/78a5fb6aa0add6496016a4509c791172c7adf2d82c45123e904bf52fc4c1c5b0/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-6.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/82ec903c99600ce275a6bc624e41a052a0f92d48631b3ade6935e75c4ffe8c61/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-5a.jpg" data-mid="236177266" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/82ec903c99600ce275a6bc624e41a052a0f92d48631b3ade6935e75c4ffe8c61/Rural-Realtions_writing-group-5a.jpg" /> Poster design and photo by Ioana Rural Relation Writing Club Contributors: Ioana Lupascu What stories take root in rural relations—and how might writing help us trace them? A slow-growing series of writing workshops exploring rural life, memory, and imagination. Each session centres on a theme—kinship, grief, or harvest—and invites participants to write from personal experience, collective rituals, and everyday observations. Gatherings follow a simple rhythm: we eat together, write through a series of gentle prompts, and share what we choose to. The space is informal, welcoming, and open to anyone curious about rural storytelling in all its forms and languages—no writing experience needed. Initiated and organised by Ioana from Seasonal Neighbours in collaboration with Myvillages, the group grows from the belief that rural stories deserve time, attention, and collective care. You can reach me at&nbsp;writing.rural.relations@gmail.com ✧ Rotterdam Writing Sessions Overview&nbsp;✧ #1 — NeighboursTheme: Kinship, feuds, friendships, and everyday tiesDate: 5&nbsp;March 2025, 18.00 - 20.30 Dish:&nbsp;Pilaf with cabbage salad and dillFocus: Explored the emotional and social bonds that shape proximity—how rural and urban neighbours relate, remember, and sometimes clash. #2 — Rituals of Grief and MourningTheme: Loss, rituals, and shared memoriesDate: 7 April 2025, 18.00 - 20.30Dish: Tomato Pea Stew Focus: Attuned to the quieter layers of grief—personal, collective, and environmental. Writing as a way to hold absence and remembrance. #3 — SowingTheme: Seeds, soil, and the working handsDate: 8 May 2025, 18.00 - 20.30Dish: Roasted Paprika StewFocus: Looked at rural labour and the temporalities of sowing—what is planted, passed on, or left dormant. #4 — Kitchens, Cooking &amp; LabourTheme: Recipes, routines, and relational careDate: 4&nbsp;June 2025, 18.00 - 20.30Dish: Bean Salad Focus: Thinking with food, preparation, and domestic work as sites of memory, connection, and artistic method.#5 — Creatures of the Night: Soil, Fur, FeatherTheme: Ecologies shaped by farming, wildness, and cohabitationDish: TBCDate: 2 July 2025, 18.00 - 20.30 Focus: Attuning to the lives that move alongside us—seen and unseen. From burrowing animals to night sounds, we’ll write through the traces of shared landscapes, feral relations, and more-than-human presence. #6—Visitors: Those Who Come &amp; Go Theme: Hospitality, intrusion, welcome, and distance Dish: TBC Date: 6 August 2025, 18.00 - 20.30 Focus: Exploring the rhythms of arrival and departure—how visitors shape the spaces they enter, how we host or guard, and what movements tell us about belonging, care, and boundaries. https://seasonalneighbours.com/Ghosts-in-Town Mon, 06 Nov 2023 12:46:46 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Ghosts-in-Town <img width="1484" height="1484" width_o="1484" height_o="1484" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1b2517486e4a106eaf31393734c2c066101472c2650d7c3deff36a11ea1f6d1/Screenshot-2023-11-06-at-14-09-54-Jonathan-de-Maeyer-jonathandemaeyer--Instagram-photos-and-videos.png" data-mid="196007914" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d1b2517486e4a106eaf31393734c2c066101472c2650d7c3deff36a11ea1f6d1/Screenshot-2023-11-06-at-14-09-54-Jonathan-de-Maeyer-jonathandemaeyer--Instagram-photos-and-videos.png" /> <img width="5760" height="3840" width_o="5760" height_o="3840" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7cabc25d245b52948227fe2bc06a52ae2010b1ff3f39fdd17657a32c20063074/JPG-106.jpg" data-mid="196007167" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7cabc25d245b52948227fe2bc06a52ae2010b1ff3f39fdd17657a32c20063074/JPG-106.jpg" /> <img width="5569" height="3713" width_o="5569" height_o="3713" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3df6e714b9d089345712bf5fd52b1f611d6c82e3e0c7dc79fd708875852739cb/JPG-23.jpg" data-mid="196007172" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3df6e714b9d089345712bf5fd52b1f611d6c82e3e0c7dc79fd708875852739cb/JPG-23.jpg" /> <img width="5760" height="3840" width_o="5760" height_o="3840" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5b13b30e3d6275eed72041751a0c25a3357332119f67d60d56fc08e31fff9579/JPG-34.jpg" data-mid="196007170" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5b13b30e3d6275eed72041751a0c25a3357332119f67d60d56fc08e31fff9579/JPG-34.jpg" /> <img width="5760" height="3840" width_o="5760" height_o="3840" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5dcf41e5702da614c715619295163d5eb169b794ae85fe6989541e7ac5aff9b5/JPG-72.jpg" data-mid="196007168" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5dcf41e5702da614c715619295163d5eb169b794ae85fe6989541e7ac5aff9b5/JPG-72.jpg" /> <img width="5760" height="3840" width_o="5760" height_o="3840" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bccaba23ce43adb3edd9d3af605918cc2503ff27da047d002544238aa0986b0b/JPG-109.jpg" data-mid="196007166" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bccaba23ce43adb3edd9d3af605918cc2503ff27da047d002544238aa0986b0b/JPG-109.jpg" /> <img width="3840" height="5760" width_o="3840" height_o="5760" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f34d250dd8e1b140dd2854f75eebf9c6cfe806974ccf6ab85192d39d5315b264/JPG-45.jpg" data-mid="196007169" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f34d250dd8e1b140dd2854f75eebf9c6cfe806974ccf6ab85192d39d5315b264/JPG-45.jpg" /> <img width="1484" height="1484" width_o="1484" height_o="1484" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2b00dc41b50f2aec11b7ebf18620a3752b63699af96e13583d4e208beac4e55c/Screenshot-2023-11-06-at-14-10-03-Jonathan-de-Maeyer-jonathandemaeyer--Instagram-photos-and-videos.png" data-mid="196007911" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2b00dc41b50f2aec11b7ebf18620a3752b63699af96e13583d4e208beac4e55c/Screenshot-2023-11-06-at-14-10-03-Jonathan-de-Maeyer-jonathandemaeyer--Instagram-photos-and-videos.png" /> <img width="3840" height="5760" width_o="3840" height_o="5760" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b56c51b20edd56802517c939e1c5b0fab88f9d0f55b4506d9e09e91d665ea810/JPG-14.jpg" data-mid="196007173" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b56c51b20edd56802517c939e1c5b0fab88f9d0f55b4506d9e09e91d665ea810/JPG-14.jpg" /> Images by Kelly Donckers &amp; Jonathan De Maeyer Ghosts in Town Event on the 22nd of Octobre 2023 in Wortel Dorp (Be), as part of “dorpsmakersfestival” organised by Ar-Tur, platform for architecture and space in the Kempen. Contributors: Jonathan De Maeyer, Ioana Lupascu, Claire Chassot &amp; Tijana Petrović What can we do as village dramaturgs in Wortel? How are/can rural conditions in western and eastern Europe (be) linked?What makes a house a home? "Come here, come here!" Her voice carried across the street, beckoning those who knew her. In the parking lot of De Guld Café in Wortel a slightly taller-than-legal house on wheels stood motionless after a long journey. Its sharp and light grey exterior is a strange invitation for snooping around. Four individuals stumbled diligently to make this space feel like home, cleaning, wiping, hanging drawings and folding maps. They took breaks for coffee and cigarettes, making the space a little messier. They shyly called the passersby from the Sunday church service or the cafe visitors to join, but there was little avail, and that was also alright. The setting was there as an open invitation. To the right, next to the bike parking area, a wide canvas displayed a printed image from Bucovina, marking the space between the street and the parking lot. You could see from both sides this atypical landscape had taken residence between two trees. Behind it, bar tables were draped with wine-stained cloths, further, you could spot an open car trunk supermarket refreshments - juices and water. There was no backstage to this parking lot dramaturgy, the stage-like spots set up for intimate chit-chat, snacking, sipping drawing, and hanging out. The air was a simmering scent of coffee, tea, and deliciously hard homemade chocolate cookies.&nbsp; And then there were five, R stopped in sight of the hanging landscape, and then they joined in helping out. "Come here, come here!" Her voice carried across the parking again, beckoning those who heard her to join in a photo together. And then there were eight, six, twelve, twenty, seventeen, or more. It rained, maybe for the best. A small group sheltered inside the house on wheels, pushing the Kempen-printed landscape further inside to make space for each other. She spoke about her connection to this place, its history and Ar-tur. Another small group took Polaroid photos of the foreign landscape, drying dripped photos on the clothes. Others stumbled around, in search of nothing in particular while enjoying some snacks. Sometime past one in the afternoon, under the tone of Andreea’s voice songs from Bucovina were sung. The audience joined in a dancing circle, a hora they call it. This dance is about spinning in circles while holding hands as a big group, the proximity is both awkward and endearing. Some scattered, some spun, and a lot of them took photos and smiled. Many thanks to Ar-Tur for organising this opportunity, to Gheorghiță Macovei from Sint-Jan Baptistkerk, the collective minds of Seasonal Neighbours, Edith Wouters, Ciel Grommen, Maximiliaan Royakkers, Annelies Hofmans, Sien Beyens, Bo Struyf, Zus &amp; Peter Ouwerkerk from Dorpscafé De Guld, Dirk Vanhaute. There are many others that have helped in visible and invisible ways. We are grateful to have met you. <img width="496" height="204" width_o="496" height_o="204" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" data-mid="196005916" border="0" data-scale="16" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/496/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" /> https://seasonalneighbours.com/Migrating-Seasons Fri, 01 Oct 2021 12:15:45 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Migrating-Seasons <img width="936" height="868" width_o="936" height_o="868" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ed8f57dabe50b99b31b6277c70bf298c7fbc24daecd43205ff48c7138043e0a6/Schermafbeelding-2021-09-23-om-15.06.22.png" data-mid="120969023" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/936/i/ed8f57dabe50b99b31b6277c70bf298c7fbc24daecd43205ff48c7138043e0a6/Schermafbeelding-2021-09-23-om-15.06.22.png" /><img width="2711" height="1829" width_o="2711" height_o="1829" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fd66a82c3cc76fcda1760cbad6d0e583e75431b51d0334133b2178fce7d63a21/aubergines-1.jpeg" data-mid="126626297" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fd66a82c3cc76fcda1760cbad6d0e583e75431b51d0334133b2178fce7d63a21/aubergines-1.jpeg" /><img width="6000" height="4000" width_o="6000" height_o="4000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1705238620b528e5e81bccc5b82dd5757bbc0e12780603d941ea30770be57af7/DSC00618_.jpg" data-mid="142151311" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1705238620b528e5e81bccc5b82dd5757bbc0e12780603d941ea30770be57af7/DSC00618_.jpg" /><img width="6720" height="4480" width_o="6720" height_o="4480" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b67cf3d9e94c1a285f78ae775e5127cb73560ee619419511a75eb2c17578322a/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_27.jpg" data-mid="142151312" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b67cf3d9e94c1a285f78ae775e5127cb73560ee619419511a75eb2c17578322a/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_27.jpg" /><img width="6720" height="4480" width_o="6720" height_o="4480" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0475f2228b781608db8b4ea85bdcbdb8deaf5e031a2b5bd04e803a302da3cbd5/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_63.jpg" data-mid="142151314" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0475f2228b781608db8b4ea85bdcbdb8deaf5e031a2b5bd04e803a302da3cbd5/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_63.jpg" /> © Selma Gurbuz Migrating Seasons&nbsp; Contributor: Anastasia EggersCan a farmers’ almanac become a tool to explore the distorted nature of post-seasonal agricultural practices? The farmer’s almanac is a traditional calendar documenting the rhythm of the agricultural year including knowledge on sowing dates, tide tables, and weather forecasting. However, due to global trade and the modernization of agricultural technology, the knowledge of this almanac became obsolete or at least out-of-tune, as well as the traditional harvest celebrations and rituals. Migrating Seasons is an attempt to redraw the farmers’ almanac according to the contemporary post-seasonal world, where the growing, harvesting, and consuming of food is no longer dependent on natural factors. The project looks at agricultural practices and their interdependence with phenomena such as the trans-European movement of workers and goods, international politics, labour rights, and energy supply. Several events representing crucial aspects of modern agriculture are highlighted on the timeline of the year. Can they become the subject of new celebrations and rituals that introduce the invisible realities behind our food system? During the Seasonal Neighbours group exposition, a first two timelines/rituals were explored: The Eggplant Relay Every year during week 44 the "olympic fire" of the aubergine season is passed on from Westland (Netherlands) to Almería (Spain) to mark the switch of the seasons between Europe’s two biggest exporters of aubergines. Looking at how the season is directed by economic aspects, and what are the logistics making this switch possible, the project follows the aubergine season and its pathways and traces in Europe. Bread and Salt* On the occasion of the arrival of seasonal workers on Flevoland’s farms, locals reflect on their ideas on temporary habitation in the countryside by collecting objects that will be presented to the workers as a welcoming gift. The exhibition in Z33 was an in-between station for the objects that will be passed on to the workers at the beginning of the season in 2022.&nbsp; *Bread and Salt (Bulgarian: хляб и сол / Polish: chlebem I solą / Russian: Хлеб-соль) is a welcoming ceremony in several cultures that is mostly know by its Slavic names. Guests are welcomed with bread and salt, bread representing wealth and prosperity, and salt is associated with friendship. Biography Anastasia Eggers&nbsp;Made possible by a grant from the Creative Industries Fund NL. https://seasonalneighbours.com/CHLOPI Sun, 03 Oct 2021 11:34:34 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/CHLOPI <img width="1519" height="1629" width_o="1519" height_o="1629" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/dbb2d96ec72d775eae3b0a66fba66d1ab7f00876f1124d9adf1c105dd861c3d8/Okrezne-w-Sandomierskiem--1841--Jan-Nepomucen-Lewicki.jpg" data-mid="127057963" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/dbb2d96ec72d775eae3b0a66fba66d1ab7f00876f1124d9adf1c105dd861c3d8/Okrezne-w-Sandomierskiem--1841--Jan-Nepomucen-Lewicki.jpg" /><img width="1064" height="1062" width_o="1064" height_o="1062" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d460a1f906c96361d486b28d9b73bbf7c58cb3fcd951d42631e7f50dac8bedad/employment-agency-FB-ad-for-seasonal-work-in-Belgium.png" data-mid="127057965" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d460a1f906c96361d486b28d9b73bbf7c58cb3fcd951d42631e7f50dac8bedad/employment-agency-FB-ad-for-seasonal-work-in-Belgium.png" /><img width="2480" height="3506" width_o="2480" height_o="3506" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1f31e4131241e677dedc59eca6f1b66f5445a43603de11a1d84e18f9c54b3822/0002.jpg" data-mid="127057980" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1f31e4131241e677dedc59eca6f1b66f5445a43603de11a1d84e18f9c54b3822/0002.jpg" /><img width="1189" height="1501" width_o="1189" height_o="1501" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d926b9ed8f07e5c1bd05b133b810e8d7c51df126dc185256f1f32eaa016c7411/Schermopname-947.png" data-mid="186118092" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d926b9ed8f07e5c1bd05b133b810e8d7c51df126dc185256f1f32eaa016c7411/Schermopname-947.png" /> CHŁOPI Contributor: Karolina Michalik How can I explore representations of “Polskość” (Polishness) through the lense of migratory seasonal labour in the European countryside? In Poland, harvest festivals called Dożynki were celebrated as early as the 16th century. Originally a folkloric event, the rural communities celebrated a year of harsh labour on the field with dance, songs, and art; specifically the weaving of a wreath (a wieniec) in the form of a crown from local grain harvests. Looking to the contemporary forms of these celebrations as a public representation of the modern Polish rural identity, I observed folklore being used as a colourful tool of political agency: enabling and maintaining a selective interpretation of the past and present based on nostalgic, religious and land-rooted patriotism. Contemporary versions of rural culture, including migratory seasonal work, are excluded from this narrative. My goal is to create a wieniec, that will be qualified to enter the competition for The Most Beautiful Wieniec Dożynkowy at the annual Presidential Dożynki hosted in Warsaw. This creation process is an attempt to broaden the folkloric representations of contemporary Polish rural identity; a hybrid construct entangled between strong notions of tradition and locality, and Poland’s engagement within the complexities of the European agricultural system. By doing so, it also seeks to debate the role of traditional artefacts as democratic tools for representing multidirectional narratives of exchange between history, surroundings, and communities.Exposition: Z33 (Hasselt, BE) - 30 January 2022 &gt; 17 April 2022 At the Seasonal Neighbours group exhibition in Z33 I presented the metal skeleton of the wieniec that will enter in the Presidential Dożynki 2022. The “architecture of the body” is one of the voting criteria (0-5 points) which refers to the overall form of the wieniec. While adhering to the guidelines provided in the contest rulebook, the form of this wieniec symbolizes my interpretation of work in contemporary European agriculture. Biography&nbsp;Karolina Michalik Photo documentation at the harvest festivals: Leo Malek <img width="496" height="204" width_o="496" height_o="204" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" data-mid="186120375" border="0" data-scale="16" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/496/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" /> &nbsp; https://seasonalneighbours.com/Houses-for-a-Seasonal-Neighbourhood Sun, 03 Oct 2021 19:17:35 +0000 seasonalneighbours https://seasonalneighbours.com/Houses-for-a-Seasonal-Neighbourhood <img width="1200" height="1600" width_o="1200" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8cb2b1928562d6e46d244ae6a664856cda6dd23692819f2b41aaf67d765df6dd/122460013_782776865876738_8038890820606938628_n.jpg" data-mid="120583447" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8cb2b1928562d6e46d244ae6a664856cda6dd23692819f2b41aaf67d765df6dd/122460013_782776865876738_8038890820606938628_n.jpg" /> Image of the Romanian house of our colleague’s aunt, as send by Facebook messenger. <img width="5909" height="3939" width_o="5909" height_o="3939" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f44cb57d1f6977d9d7c7e48878df200481b0136a1db233f985449d544185e147/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_6.jpg" data-mid="172645544" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f44cb57d1f6977d9d7c7e48878df200481b0136a1db233f985449d544185e147/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_6.jpg" /> <img width="6255" height="4170" width_o="6255" height_o="4170" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/45ad055ddf5c6551e785d675382c81d821b7ba5ed91a6e79e6a4f4920d2da15f/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_4.jpg" data-mid="172645535" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/45ad055ddf5c6551e785d675382c81d821b7ba5ed91a6e79e6a4f4920d2da15f/Seasonal-Neighbours_Z33_Selma-Gurbuz_4.jpg" /> <img width="4000" height="3000" width_o="4000" height_o="3000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/90a2bbefa7375e9adecbb64716c4019f54f7e3b00935ac446d984ad004cd5e6d/20220209_152940.jpg" data-mid="172645435" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/90a2bbefa7375e9adecbb64716c4019f54f7e3b00935ac446d984ad004cd5e6d/20220209_152940.jpg" /> <img width="4000" height="3000" width_o="4000" height_o="3000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/40e96202e36219c572fe96c2e0a3127739ba8759874a8513247bb7060c7c9e29/20220209_165432.jpg" data-mid="172645436" border="0" data-scale="93" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/40e96202e36219c572fe96c2e0a3127739ba8759874a8513247bb7060c7c9e29/20220209_165432.jpg" /> <img width="2880" height="1800" width_o="2880" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7cab98c95ffda26b215d4a6284767b4785ddc689ee2c367cd961e6efbf7ec61b/Screenshot-2022-03-16-at-15.56.40.png" data-mid="172645437" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7cab98c95ffda26b215d4a6284767b4785ddc689ee2c367cd961e6efbf7ec61b/Screenshot-2022-03-16-at-15.56.40.png" /> Images of the model in Z33, and the discussions around it. Houses for a Seasonal Neighbourhood Contributors: Maximiliaan Royakkers &amp; Ciel Grommen How to transform a Flemish suburban house into a residency for seasonal migrants? How are/can rural conditions in western and eastern Europe (be) linked? After picking strawberries in a greenhouse in Hoogstraten (BE) for two weeks, we decided to visit our former colleagues in their hometown Maneuti. The Romanian families proudly showed us their brand new houses that were built thanks to the money of their foreign labour. The houses, sampling bits and pieces of western suburban typologies in shape and lay-out, are inhabited in a peculiar way to us, out of tune with the lifestyle we would normally expect in such a lay-out. To understand this contrast between the production of space and form, and the way of living, it helped us to look at the traditional houses in the Romanian countryside. There we learned that the house and the space around it unfold into overlapping places between public and private, inside and outside, allowing for a convivial coexistence with neighbours and livestock. These observations lead us to question the built environment of the Flemish countryside and its typical housing typology, the fermette. By applying a logic of appropriation of form and space we will imagine a residence for migrant workers, inspired by our observations in Romania’s countryside and fed through conversations about the built environment and daily life in different Eastern European countries.Exposition: Z33 (Hasselt, BE) - 30 January 2022 &gt; 17 April 2022 For the Seasonal Neighbours group exhibition in Z33 our imaginations unravelled in a model of a prototypical street of the Flemish countryside. Over the course of the exhibition, conversations with different stakeholders (farmers, policy makers, seasonal labourers etc.) were condensed into a series of models; transforming, cutting and editing fermettes.Many thanks to Steve and Leen from Hoezaerenbosh in Hoogstraten to give us a seasonal job and becoming our friends, to our colleagues Elena, Adrian, Cornel, Vasilis, Patrick, Marek, David, Ornella, ... to share so many stories and collegial moments and to host us in Romania, to Stebo and Samenlevingsopbouw to exchange their insights, and many more. <img width="496" height="204" width_o="496" height_o="204" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" data-mid="186120386" border="0" data-scale="16" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/496/i/d1aebe0f3c28f1b673bc3e1f18a2ac6f4e6c451e0b4452b5f2505cc4199a3eba/Flanders_horizontaal_naakt.png" />