The inaugural event has been designed by the art director of performances and museologist Celia Stroom. After 15 years working for museums, dance companies and music ensembles, she has researched to conceive a new format of exhibition in contrast to the traditional collections-centred museum models. 

Far from the clinical white cube model, the body of the visitor is immersed in a labyrinth of spontaneous artistic proposals that grow 3 weeks before during an intensive art residency based on body and nature. 

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How an exhibition project can re-create links among humans ?

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"The enclosed garden" (TEG) is composed of a residency of creation isolated in the countryside. It's followed by a hidden exhibition installed in a non institutional space. The audience informed by networking and by word of mouth rings the bell and open the door of a space designed by 10 women (5 from the host country and 5 from abroad). Room after room, they discover a series of performances where artists work towards opening up about psychological, political, societal perceptions. 

How locked away from our intimate realities are we?

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The project challenges our personal perception of Nature (outside) and our own nature (inside). The enclosed garden is a place where we contemplate, dialogue with each element to cut ourselves off from our society where we learn to deny the Nature and Our unique individual nature. The enclosed garden project is an island, bringing everyone far from daily routine and offering a space for equality, learning, healing. The short duration of a month triggers a searing shock which feeds the creative energy. Every day we investigate links between our past and present, our vision of reality and our surrealist imaginations, between utopia and dystopia. This exhibition project works around this tension, generating an inner explosion, that artists share later on with the audience, who are offered the possibility to experience an intimate moment, far from the clinical and aseptic atmosphere of the white cubes. We call this exhibition format an EXPLOSITION. 

What are the conditions ?

TEG happens every two years in a new country. Producing such an ambitious project represents significant costs. Therefore, HW raises funds to prepare the project, to finance the residency space and to cover the budget for the production of the exhibition. It also provides artists with accommodation on site and daily stipends. If artists cannot apply for a travel grant, HW support travel fees as well. Moreover, all artists receive equal fees for the exhibition, no matter the country where they come from.

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