WILHELMINA NELLIE VAN RAVENHORST

Veenendaal, The Netherlands

Installation

www.wnvanravenhorst.com

Workshop-Space: kubaai, Spinnerei, Kunsthaus

Title: (untitled)

Outdoor installation

Photo © Joop van Reeken

The Dutch artist describes her idea of “Space” as follows: “Space is our stage. There is a lot of it; it is everywhere, and it is infinite. Look at nature – take the spider. It builds its home in huge spaces that we take for granted. Space is our canvas. What do we do with it? We connect with our environment, and with others. In this way we are constantly building structures, shaping space. And the form this process takes shapes the reality we inhabit.”

Wilhelmina Nellie van Ravenhorst wanted to visualize and at the same time stage this existential process of connections and occupations of space with the creation of spider webs. The artist implemented her idea in several places at once: among others, on the Kunsthaus building, at the Podiumsbrücke and on the flat roof of the Spinnerei. She used only one wool thread in magenta for each of the huge nets, which is why all the structures were visible from a distance. In this way, the artist also created visual connections – especially on the KUBAAI terrain.

For Wilhelmina Nellie van Ravenhorst, Bocholt is one of these nets with the most diverse connections: An active place of togetherness; home and refuge; nature and city; culture and work; inner city and industrial area; paths and streets; present and future: “The spider web functions as an illustration of all these different facets that make up a space, a city over time. In addition, the thread used is of course meant to remind us of the textile industry, in which cotton threads were woven into cotton cloth.”