niel-de-vries

Niel de Vries

First Name: Niel

Last Name: de Vries

Specialisms: Storytelling / Art Performance / Installation/Sculpture

Sectors:

My Location: Antwerp, Belgium

University / College: Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp

Course / Program Title: Fine Art MA

About

In my work I ask questions about the landscapes I inhabit, and coming from the Low-Countries my investigations have focused on riverscapes. I wonder what it means to be a river-dweller in times when these watery environments, which are so central to life, are under threat by ecological collapse. Thinking and working with rivers is useful in imagining alternative ways of being on this planet, as they bring to light flaws in dualistic thinking.

My practice consists of making excursions along the river where each time I attempt to understand yet another dimension of these ecosystems. Sometimes I join scientists in the field, observing the ways they work with the river; other times I scavenge the banks and beaches for materials to use in my projects. River mythologies and archaeology also inform my practice. I bring these experiences together in performative lectures, public interventions, and gatherings with the aim to open up my questions and to start a dialogue.

I consider myself an amateur naturalist, a tinkering organizer, and a riverside bricoleur.

in a wet context

bottle cam