Credits

Colofon / Credits Tanja Smeets Binnenlandse vreemden / Domestic Strangers Tekst en redactie / Text and editing: Els Hoek Vertaling / Translation: Gerard Forde Afbeeldingen / Images: Peter Cox, Adriaan van Dam, Nanne op t Ende, Paulina Gomez, Gerard Groenewoud, Ernst Moritz, Bob Negrijn, Tanja Smeets, Ed Watkins, Herbert Wiggerman, Hans Wilschut,Mels van Zutphen Vormgeving / Design: Esther de Vries (Niessen & De Vries) Beeld bewerking en Lithografie / Colour correction and Lithography: Colour & Books Druk / Print: drukkerij Mart.Spruijt Oplage / Edition: 900 Uitgever / Publisher : Timmer Art Books ISBN 978-94-91182-17-4 Met dank aan / With the kind support of: Catharien Romijn, Mirke Beckers, Anna Livestro Fondsen / Funds Mondriaanfonds, KF Heinfonds, Fentener van Vlissingenfonds, Attema. Speciale dank aan / special thanks to: museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Sjarel Ex, Cathy Jacob, Erica van Buchem, Els Hoek, Richard Niessen en Esther de Vries, Gerard Forde, Sundaymorning@ ekwc, Ranti Tjan, Lydia van Oosten, Suzanna de Sitter, Tejo Remy

Alle rechten voorbehouden. Niets uit deze uitgave mag worden verveelvoudigd, opgeslagen in een geautomatiseerd bestand, of openbaar gemaakt, in enige vorm, of op enige wijze, hetzij elektronisch, mechanisch, door fotokopieën, opnamen of welke manier dan ook, zonder voorafgaande schriftelijke toestemming van de uitgever / All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission by the Publisher.

Meer informatie / More information: w w w. tanjasmeets.nl

Deze publicatie verschijnt tegelijktijdig met de tentoonstelling ‘Domestic Strangers’ in het Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, NL / This book is published to coincide with the exhibition ‘ Domestic Strangers’ at Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, NL 2013, Red Landscape museum Boijmans van Beuningen Rotterdam NL kopjes, keramiek / cups, ceramics foto / photo: Ernst Moritz 2013, Silent Runner  museum Boijmans van Beuningen Rotterdam NL              Afstandhouders / concrete spacers foto / photo: Ernst Moritz 2013, All Systems Melt Down museum Boijmans van Beuningen Rotterdam NL porselein, frituurzeven / porcelain, deep- frying sieves foto / photo: Ernst Moritz 2013, Black Sun museum Boijmans van Beuningen Rotterdam NL zwarte Chinese lepels / black Chinese spoons foto / photo: Ernst Moritz

Wat hebben een tube verf en een doos afstandhouders met elkaar gemeen? Afstand-houders en Chinese soeplepels? Soeplepels en koffiekopjes? Koffiekopjes en plastic badmatten? Badmatten en frituurzeven? Zeven en klei? Klei en verf? Het zijn allemaal materialen die een kunstenaar kan gebruiken om de illusie van leven te creëren. Of beter gezegd: het zijn de materialen die Tanja Smeets (Wijchen, 1963) gebruikt voor beelden die lijken te groeien en schijnen te bewegen. Allemaal, behalve verf dan; dat gebruikt ze sinds ze de Academie in Arnhem verliet eigenlijk niet meer. Verf is zo’n gedoe; liever schildert ze met materialen die van zichzelf al de juiste kleur hebben en laat ze textuur ontstaan door de losse ‘toetsen’ (lepels, kopjes et cetera) op zo’n manier met elkaar te verbinden dat ze een geheel gaan vormen. Als doek fungeert vaak een gewoon, soms zelfs ietwat onooglijk stukje werkelijkheid: het trappengat in een kantoorgebouw, de rafelrand van een nieuwbouwwijk, de muur bij een afvalstation. In Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is het zogenaamde ‘Klaverblad’ zo’n terloops gebied: vier etalageachtige ruimtes aan de hal bij de vroegere personeelsingang. Je komt er langs wanneer je over de begane grond naar de oudbouw loopt; als je de aula in gaat, naar de WC moet of iets wilt gaan drinken in het paviljoen. Meestal belandt je er toevallig. Des te groter de verrassing als daar plotseling van alles aan de hand is. Aan de ene kant priemen rode tongen uit het plafond naar beneden (als stalactieten) en, door de grond naar boven (als stalagmieten). Er lijkt geen einde te komen aan dit woud van vurige tentakels, maar wie besluit de andere kant op te gaan, stuit meteen op een donkere wervelwind die razend op je af komt en je ongetwijfeld mee zal gaan sleuren op zijn verwoestende tocht. De overkant van de hal biedt gelukkig wel enige veiligheid; daar groeien, bloemachtige wezens, sommige groot met forse voelsprieten, andere klein en compact; ze zijn met elkaar verbonden door lange wierachtige slierten. Alles wit. Alles ogenschijnlijk vredig

What do a tube of paint and a box of concrete spacers have in common? Concrete spacers and Chinese soupspoons? Soupspoons and coffee cups? Coffee cups and plastic bath mats? Bath mats and deep-frying sieves? Sieves and clay? Clay and paint? They are all materials that an artist can use to create the illusion of life. Or better said: they are the materials that Tanja Smeets (Wijchen, 1963) uses for sculptures that seem to grow and appear to move. All except paint, which she stopped using when she left art school in Arnhem. Paint is such a fuss. She prefers to paint with materials that already have the right colour and to create texture by combing individual ‘dabs’ (spoons, cups etc.) in such a way that they form a new entity. Her canvas is often an ordinary or even unsightly piece of reality: the stairwell in an office building, the edge of a new housing development, the wall of a recycling centre. In Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, the so-called ‘Cloverleaf’ is just such a casual area: four spaces that resemble shop windows adjacent to the hallway by what used to be the staff entrance. You pass it when you cross the ground floor towards the old wing, when you go to the auditorium, to the toilets, or on your way to the restaurant in the pavilion. Mostly you end up here by chance. Which makes it all the more surprising when you suddenly find it teeming with activity. On one side red tongues pierce through the ceiling like stalactites and rise up through the floor like stalagmites. There seems to be no end to this forest of fiery tentacles, but if you head in the opposite direction you are immediately stopped by a dark whirlwind that will, no doubt, drag you along in its destructive path. Thankfully the other side of the hall offers a degree of safety: a field of flower-like organisms, some with large antennae, others small and compact, connected by long seaweed-like tendrils. All in white. And all apparently quiet and innocent. If you find even this pale deep-sea atmosphere threatening you may seek refuge in the fourth and final space in the Cloverleaf. There you encounter a soft lacy web that engulfs you like a benevolent foam, insulating

en onschuldig. Wie ook deze bleke diepzee-sfeer nog verraderlijk acht, kan tenslotte een toevlucht vinden in de vierde ruimte van het Klaverblad. Daarin en uit groeit een zachte kanten web dat zich als een weldadig schuim om je heen plooit, je beschermt tegen geluiden en impulsen van buitenaf en dat je zelfs zoetjes aan in slaap kan wiegen. Totdat… Een afstand-houder is een plastic rozetje met een doorsnede variërend van 1,5 tot 7 centimeter, dat wordt gebruikt in de betonbouw. Op één punt is er een opening tussen twee rozetblaadjes en in die opening kan betonijzer of een spijl van een bouwstaalmat worden geklemd. De afstandhouder is puur functioneel; samen met een heleboel collega-afstand-houders zorgt hij er voor dat de wapening niet door het nog natte beton heen naar de ondergrond zakt. Maar wie ziet dit tere, grijswitte bloemetje? De bouwvakker, misschien. Als het beton eenmaal is gestort, lijkt het in elk geval voorgoed verdwenen. Voor Tanja Smeets heeft de afstand-houder alle eigenschappen die een materiaal interessant maken: hij is niet kostbaar, niet gemaakt om gezien te worden, komt en heeft ook alleen effect in grote getalen en hij is gewoon te koop in de bouwmarkt. Daarbij laten de afzonderlijke rozetjes zich gemakkelijk en mooi verbinden door een vergelijkbaar nietig voorwerpje: de tie-rip. Nou ja, gemakkelijk…een monnikenwerk is het, dat wel! De oplossing die Smeets daarvoor heeft gevonden is eenvoudig en doeltreffend: een groep jonge meiden, vriendinnen van elkaar, komen helpen in het atelier en het klusje is niet alleen snel, maar ook op een gezellige en traditioneel vrouwelijke manier geklaard. Het resultaat is een bewegelijke als het ware schuimende structuur die in de verste verte niet lijkt op architectuur – eerder iets weg heeft van een breiwerkje - maar die net zo sterk is als ijzer of beton. Misschien nog wel sterker. Ook de andere gebruiksvoorwerpen die Smeets als bouwstenen voor haar werk gebruikt zijn onopvallend, goedkoop en dienend van karakter:

you from external sounds and impulses and which can even lull you into a gentle sleep. Until… A concrete spacer is a plastic rosette with a diameter varying from 1.5 to 7 cm, used in reinforced-concrete construction. On one side, between two of the petals, is an opening designed to hold a reinforcing bar. The concrete spacer is purely functional: together with many other fellow concrete spacers, it ensures that the reinforcing bars do not sink through the wet concrete. But who sees this delicate, grey-white flower? The construction worker perhaps. But once the concrete has set, it disappears from view forever. For Tanja Smeets the concrete spacer has all the characteristics that make a material interesting: it is inexpensive, it was not made to be seen, it only has an effect in large numbers, and it is available from every hardware store. And the individual rosettes can easily be connected by another comparably insignificant item: the cable tie. Well, easily… it is a hell of a lot of work! But Smeets has found a simple and effective solution: a group of young women friends come to her studio to help and the job is done quickly and in a pleasant atmosphere, similar to traditional knitting circle. The result is an agile, foam-like structure that more closely resembles macramé than architecture, but which is just as strong as iron or concrete. Perhaps even stronger. The other everyday objects that Smeets uses as building blocks for her work are also unremarkable, inexpensive and utilitarian: spoons and deepfrying sieves, coffee cups, and bathmats. And she manipulates or transforms each of these objects in such a way that they truly act as building materials. The deep-frying sieve becomes a supporting structure from which rises a delicate city of porcelain skyscrapers; the bathmats unravel in long tendrils connecting several of these porcelain cities. And finally, the coffee cups grow fungus-like handles that function as the cement that binds the individual elements.

Index van werken opgenomen in dit boek (op jaartal). / Index of works included in this book (by year).

2002, Protopark Siegerpark, Sloterweg, Amsterdam, NL plastic olieslang / plastic tubing, boom; 5 x 7 x 12 m opdrachtgever / commissioned by: Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst (AFK) foto / photo: Tanja Smeets The Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst asked ten artists to create a sculpture for a green space in the city, thus fusing the experience of art and nature. The commission called for a ‘prototype’ that would enhance the enjoyment of both. One of the locations is the Siegerpark, a small park on the Sloterweg in Amsterdam’s Nieuw-West neighbourhood. It was laid out in the 1920s by the landscape architect Jan Bosma for the wealthy patron Dr Wilhelm Sieger, who was interested in beekeeping. The park was acquired by the City of Amsterdam in the 1950s and is now maintained in an environmentally responsible fashion. It attracts many visitors and many local office workers take their breaks there. ‘How environmentally responsible can you be as an artist, as a person? I chose plastic tubing for 60 cents per metre and wove it on large frames to create glistening blue mats. It took these to the park and wove them onto the branches of an old tree. My sculpture nestles like a parasite in the tree, creating a new entity. Now it’s just a matter of waiting to see how long it takes before people see the new situation as “natural”.’

2003, Invader Voormalig Gerechtsgebouw, Korte Nieuwstraat 14, Utrecht, NL polyurethaan strengen van verschillende dikte / strings of polyurethane foam of different girths; 3.50 x 8.00 x 6.00 m foto / photo: Hans Wilschut

2003, Zonder titel / Untitled Voedsel en Warenautoriteit Inspectorate for Consumer Goods, Westelijke Parallelweg 4, Zwijndrecht, NL piepschuim bolletjes, zand, lijm / polystyrene balls, sand, glue; 8 x 4 x 2 m opdrachtgever / commissioned by: Rijksgebouwendienst foto / photo: Mels van Zutphen ‘Things are not always what they seem’; that must be the motto for anyone who works at the Inspectorate for Consumer Goods. Apparently clean objects can harbour a disgusting world of bacteria, moulds and other worrying

organisms that can pose a threat to public health. ‘Things do not always resemble what they are’ could be Tanja Smeets’ motto, and so she was a perfect match for the commission to create a sculpture for the new building of the Inspectorate for Consumer Goods in Zwijndrecht. The building is a stack of semi-transparent cubes, ideally suited to a large amorphous sculpture that appears to eat its ways from floor to floor: ‘I wanted to make something that evoked an accumulation of micro-organisms, so the components had to be small unsightly. I chose polystyrene balls with a diameter of 3 to12 centimetres. The balls are impregnated with a flame-retardant material and sprayed with a mixture of sand and glue. They are mounted on a metal frame. Together they form the “hand of God”, as it were, which effortlessly permeates floors and walls and attacks the brand-new building like an assassin.’ The sculpture is eight metres high. It descends from the third floor, through two storeys, ending at the ceiling of the ground floor. At two points on its path, it penetrates the glazed panels of the atrium, attaching itself to the blinds. Because the sculpture was built and finished on site, it really appears to flow through the building.

2005, Zonder titel / Untiteld Galerie van Wijngaarden, Amsterdam, NL lycra, zwarte bonen / lycra, black beans; 4 x 2 x 2 m foto / photo: Herbert Wiggerman

2006, Fatal Flowers Prinsenhof Groningen, NL tentoonstelling / exhibition Open Monumentendag zwarte bonen, lycra / black beans, lycra; 6 x 1.50 x 1.50 m opdrachtgever / commisioned by: CBK Groningen foto / photo: Harry Cock

2006, Zonder titel / Untitled VHDG, Blokhuisplein 40, Leeuwarden, NL lycra en zwarte bonen / lycra and black beans; 5 x 7 x 4 m Opdrachtgever / Commissioned by: Stichting Voorheen De Gemeente foto / photo: Gerard Groenewoud After seven years of contemporary arts activism in Leeuwarden without a fixed base of operations, Stichting Voorheen De Gemeente opened a space on the Blokhuisplein. The first exhibition was entitled ‘Proliferate’ and Tanja Smeets was asked (along with Lizan Freijsen and Driessens & Verstappen) to make a sculpture. ‘I graduated in

painting, and seek materials that I can use as “paint”. I cut metres and metres of lycra bikini fabric into strips: kitsch printed fabrics, coloured in all shades of blue. By stretching the strips into long tendrils, weaving them together, incorporating black beans every now and then, I fused the materials into a new structure.’ The sculpture in Leeuwarden was a nasty, dripping growth that appeared to penetrate through the cracks near the windows and create new offshoots. It gave the impression that the VHDG’s new space would quickly become overgrown.

Second World War. The lentils are knotted into the tights. And together they form a red syrup-like substance that resembles clotting blood.

2008, Het Hutje / The Cabin Bergeijk, NL  stoffen van De Ploeg / fabrics from De Ploeg; 3 x 2.5 x 1.5 m opdrachtgever/commissioned by: DAAR, Cultural heritage Bergeijk, Rietveld, Ruys en / and De Ploeg foto / photo: Tanja Smeets

2008, Zonder titel / Untitled Hoofdkantoor DSM / Royal DSM Headquarters, Het Overloon 1, Heerlen NL Lycra en rode linzen / Lycra and red lentils; 6 x 2 m opdrachtgever / commissioned by: DSM / Royal DSM foto / photo: Peter Cox Royal DSM develops and makes ingredients for food, pharmaceuticals and high-tech materials. The company originated as a state-owned coalmining firm in 1902 (Dutch State Mines), and developed via petrochemicals to become a multinational company. Tanja Smeets was commissioned to make a sculpture for the stairwell of the Dutch headquarters in Heerlen. ‘I played with all three areas in which the company is active – food, medicine and plastics – and looked for the human element within the cold and anaemic building. Where is the warmth? Is there life under the thick concrete skin? Would I dare to set my teeth into it, like a vampire?’ The orange lentils form the basis for the most delicious meals and also resemble pills. The tights are made from one of the new materials developed by DSM after the

2008, Homeshaker (Accidental Carpet) Hans Berger Kliniek / Hans Berger Clinic, Muldersteeg 6, Oosterhout NL wollen dekens en stoelen / woollen blankets and chairs; 2.40 x 3.00 en 2.30 x 2.30 m opdrachtgever: Stichting Kunst in de Openbare Ruimte (S.K.O.R) / commisioned by Foundation for Public Art and Domain (S.K.O.R) In samenwerking met / In collaboration with Tejo Remy and Rene Veenhuizen foto / photo: Peter Cox

The Hans Berger Clinic in Oosterhout specialises in handling people with epilepsy and sleep disorders. Unlike in a normal hospital, the patients do not spend all day in bed. Tanja Smeets was asked, together with the designers Tejo Remy and Rene Veenhuizen, to create a pleasant environment where the patients can hang out. Smeets shares with Remy and Veenhuizen a preference for complex structures and an unusual use of materials. The trio named the project ‘Homeshaker’, a title that suggests the creation of a homely atmosphere in a building for people whose lives have literally been shaken up. ‘To minimise the effects of an epileptic fit, you need warmth and softness: an environment with rounded forms and lots of places to sit and lie down. We chose used woollen blankets as our basic material. We stacked and/or cut them in strips and coiled bundles of different coloured strips around each other.’ This created brain-like structures that were glued together to make thick rugs for two small spaces. In one space, the brain rug is draped across a base of chairs; above it hangs a spiral-shaped chandelier of blanket strips. In the other space the rug is directly on the floor, under an enormous lampshade: a large, soft cap that dampens sounds, weakens impulses and lovingly protects those who sit beneath it.

2009, Unbridled Pillar Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, 4881 Broadway at 204th Street, New York, USA Afstand-houders en tie-raps / concrete spacers, tie-raps; 4 x 3 x 2 m opdrachtgever / commissioned by: Netherland-America Foundation (NAF) 5 Dutch Days Foto / Photo: Tanja Smeets

The Netherland-America Foundation exists to promote the exchange of culture and knowledge between the Netherlands and the United States. Each year in November the NAF organises ‘5 Dutch Days’ in New York, exploring the influence of Dutch art and culture on the city. In 2009 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of relations between the Netherlands and New York, the NAF asked Tanja Smeets to make a sculpture for the Dyckman Farmhouse on Manhattan’s northernmost tip. The farmhouse was built c.1784 by the Dutch Dyckman family. An old drawing shows that the farm originally sat among acres of land on a tree-lined lane. It is now in a small garden on busy Broadway, completely surrounded by typical American tenement buildings. ‘I see this project as a challenge to work with materials brought from elsewhere. On my visits to hardware stores over the years, I had fallen in love with the small plastic flowers used in concrete construction. Wouldn’t it be wonderful… But I could never find a satisfactory way to connect these “separators”, until I discovered cable ties. I used the two individual components to create a new “material” on site.’ The result is a pale plastic construction that grows in a spiralling formation around the corner pillar of the veranda. The sculpture has ensured that this now familiar farmhouse is once again more noticeable from the street.

2009, Sailors Dream New York, USA blauwe waslijn, gehaakt / blue clothesline, crocheted; 6 x 5  x  3 m opdrachtgever / commissioned by: Netherland-America Foundation (NAF) 5 Dutch Days foto / photo: Tanja Smeets