the Milena principle : Made Of Walking | WALC

 

 

 

Made of Walking on Facebook Click here > >

 

 

 

2026 > >

 

Made of Walking – Prosperpolder 2026

 

10–18 september 2026 | Beveren, België

Internationaal residentie- en co-creatielab over wandelkunst, landschap en lokale gemeenschappen. Onderdeel van het Creative Europe-samenwerkingsproject Walking Arts and Local Communities (WALC)

 

Deelnemende residentiekunstenaars

Ienke Kastelein (Nederland), Alba Sauleda (Spanje), Katerina Drakopoulou (Griekenland), Fred Adam (Frankrijk|Spanje), Marc Dhaenens (België).

 

Bijdragende kunstenaars, onderzoekers en partners

Natacha Antão (PT), Annemarie Lopez (UK), Clara Gari (ES), Mary Marinopoulou (GR), Nick Verouden (NL), Maaike van Cruchten (NL), Simona Vermeire (RO), Christos Ioannidis (GR), Pieter-Jan Meire, Peter Deckers (B), Rien Van Meensel (B), Isolde Vandemoortele (B), Gigacircus (FR), samen met de Europese WALC-partners.

 

Locaties

Erfgoedhuis Hof ter Welle • Prosperpolder • Doel • De Doolen • De Maalderij • Fort Liefkenshoek • Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe • Melsele/Zwijndrecht • De Bron & De Stroom

 

Gedurende negen dagen komen internationale kunstenaars, onderzoekers, lokale organisaties en bewoners samen om landschap, erfgoed, ecologie, verhalen vertellen en participatie te verkennen door middel van artistiek onderzoek en collectieve creatie. Het programma combineert kunstenaarsresidenties, co-creatielaboratoria, voorstellingen, begeleide wandelingen, lezingen, workshops, installaties en publieke ontmoetingen in de grenslandschappen van Prosperpolder, Doel, het Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe en het Schelde-estuarium.

 

 

Donderdag 10 september

 

Aankomstdag: aankomst van kunstenaars en WALC-partners
Welkomstmoment in Erfgoedhuis Hof ter Welle
Inleiding tot de residentie
Informele bijeenkomst

 

 

Vrijdag 11 september

 

Residentie

12:30 > Kunstenaarslunch (De Griel)

 

Publiek programma
19:00 > Is Walking Art?
Openingsavond & filmvertoning in Erfgoedhuis Hof ter Welle
Opening van de Made of Walking-residentie & Lab.
Vertoning van de documentaire Is Walking Art? van Christos Ioannidis, gevolgd door een gesprek met de residentiekunstenaars en de lokale gemeenschap.

 

 

Zaterdag 12 september

Residentie

10:00 > Interne coördinatievergadering | Open Lab en programmaplanning

 

Publiek programma
16:00 > NYMPH / LYMPH: De lymfatische intelligentie van de polder: hybride lezing & multimediaperformance: Simona Vermeire & Fred Adam. Een verkenning van wetlands als levende ecosystemen door middel van artistiek onderzoek, ecologie en wandelen.

 

 

Zondag 13 september

 

Publiek programma

09:30 > Bijeenkomst Café Saeftinghe
10:30 > Begeleide wandeling Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe – Lokale gids
12:30 > Optionele lunch Café Saeftinghe
14:00 > Verhalen uit het moeras – Vertelvoorstelling: Rien Van Meensel
20:00 > Microcosmos-wandeling – Walkshop: Fred Adam – Prosperpolder

 

 

Maandag 14 september

Residentie

Open Lab

 

Publiek programma
16:30 > Grenslandschappen in transitie, lezing: Pieter-Jan Meire
17.30 > Rondleiding langs erfgoed: Peter Deckers – De Maalderij
18.30 > Gemeenschappelijk soepdiner
19.00 > The Mobile Wetland, meeslepende audiovisuele ervaring: Fred Adam
19.30 > The Landscape as Performance, performatieve wandeling: Ienke Kastelein

 

 

Dinsdag 15 september

 

Residentie

Open Lab van de residentiekunstenaars

 

Publiek programma

10:00 > Common Ground: De kaart van Beveren borduren – Participatieve wandelworkshop: Natacha Antão
11:00 > Storylarking – Creatieve wandelworkshop: Annemarie Lopez
13:30 > Wandelen met Le moindre geste - Presentatie & gesprek: Clara Gari & Eva Marichalar Freixa
17:00 > Bezoek aan de gemeenschapstuin en het voedselbos van De Doolen
18:00 > Lezing over natuur, milieu en duurzaamheid: Isolde Vandemoortele
19:00 > Gemeenschappelijke pannenkoekenbijeenkomst
19:30 > 22 Stops - Participatieve wandelperformance: Katerina Drakopoulou - Doel

 

 

Woensdag 16 september

 

Residentie

Kunstenaars' Open Lab:

 

Publiek programma

10:00 > Data Walking, workshop: Nick Verouden & Maaike van Cruchten
13:30 > A Quiet Game Around an Art and Health Project, interactieve sessie: Clara Gari
18:00 > To Walk Your Life, begeleide kunstwandeling: Marc Dhaenens – Fort Liefkenshoek
19:30 > Optioneel diner – Fort Liefkenshoek
22:00 > Nachtwandeling, participatieve wandeling: Simone Etter, Melsele / Zwijndrecht

 

 

Donderdag 17 september

Residentie

Kunstenaars' Open Lab

 

Publiek programma

10:00 > Absorb Ensemble, Walkshop: Mary Marinopoulou
14:00 > Wandelen met Io, participatieve wandeling: Alba Sauleda met deelnemers dagcentra De Bron & De Stroom te Beveren.
17:00 > Een participatieve wandeling in verdwijning, performatieve wandeling: Mary Marinopoulou
18:00 > Presentaties van de residentie: presentatie van de artistieke werken en het onderzoek dat tijdens de residentie is ontwikkeld.
18:00 > WALC-netwerkuitwisseling, presentaties door de Europese WALC-partners over toekomstige samenwerkingen in de aanloop naar 2027.

 

Deelnemende partners:

België: The Milena Principle / Locative Media Supercluster / walk · listen · create

Spanje: Nau Côclea

Portugal: Lab2.Walk.PT & The Walking Body

Griekenland: Action Synergy

Griekenland: Visual March to Prespa / UOWM

Frankrijk: Gigacircus

 

19:00 > Migrating Voices, afsluitende participatieve multimediavoorstelling: Gigacircus (Frankrijk)

20:00 > Afsluitende receptie - Meulenberg

 

 

Friday 18 September

Vertrek van kunstenaars en deelnemers.

 

Het volledige programma is te vinden op:

https://walklistencreate.org/conference/made-of-walking/

 

Downlaod hier de PDF met het volledige programma > >

 

 

Een initiatief van het Milena Principle (Anna-Maria Mestdagh, Stefaan van Biesen en Geert Vermeire). Momenteel vinden vergevorderde gesprekken plaats over de organisatie van een nieuwe internationale editie van Made of Walking in 2026 in Prosperpolder, Beveren, in samenwerking met de gemeente Beveren–Kruibeke–Zwijndrecht en het WALC-netwerk.

 

Met bijzondere dank aan Hilde Reyniers (coördinator Cultuurbeleid), evenals aan collega’s Ines De Smet (Toerisme) en anderen voor hun steun. Het evenement zal worden gekoppeld aan een breder programma van tentoonstellingen en aanverwante projecten.

 

Het unieke landschap van Beveren — met zijn uitgestrekte schorren en polders, landbouwgebieden, het Grenspark Groot Saeftinghe, het verlaten dorp Doel en de nabijheid van haven- en industriële infrastructuur — vormt een krachtige context om de spanningen en wisselwerkingen tussen natuur, verstedelijking en gemeenschap te onderzoeken.

 

Het verlaten dorp Doel (Beveren)

 

Made of Walking is een langetermijninitiatief van het Milena Principle, een organisatie die opereert onder de vleugels van de Van Biesen–Mestdagh Private Foundation (sinds 2005) en gevestigd is in Melsele, Beveren. Sinds 2016 brengt het kunstenaars, denkers en gemeenschappen samen rond wandelen als een artistieke en interdisciplinaire praktijk.

 

Het initiatief werkte samen met kunstacademies en universiteiten, waaronder de Académie des Beaux-Arts de Bruxelles, RITCS, KASK, de Academie voor Schone Kunsten van Sarajevo, en de universiteiten van Edinburgh, Lissabon, Minho, Girona, Athene, São Paulo en Maine, evenals de Parsons School of Design (New York), het Brooklyn Museum, de Boston Society of Architects en het Nationaal Museum van Brasília.

 

Daarnaast is Made of Walking partner in het Europese Creative Europe-project WALC – Walking Arts and Local Communities, samen met tien partnerorganisaties.

 

Made of Walking brengt internationale kunstenaars samen in kwetsbare landschappen om via wandelen de dialoog met lokale gemeenschappen te stimuleren en om artistieke interventies en performances te ontwikkelen die gevoelig zijn voor ecologische en maatschappelijke contexten. Sinds de oprichting namen meer dan duizend kunstenaars uit verschillende landen deel aan het initiatief.

 

Ontstaan in Melsele groeide het initiatief vanuit lokale tentoonstellingen en activiteiten (onder meer in Hof ter Saksen, Cortewalle, Meulenberg en Hof ter Welle) uit tot een sterk nationaal en internationaal netwerk, met presentaties in instellingen zoals S.M.A.K. en op belangrijke walking-art-bijeenkomsten en festivals in Griekenland, Cyprus, Frankrijk, Portugal en Spanje.

 

In 2026–2027 komt het initiatief naar Beveren–Prosperpolder met een programma dat bestaat uit een week kunstenaarsresidenties, ontwikkeld in dialoog met lokale bewoners en organisaties uit Beveren; een werkbezoek van de tien Europese partners (september 2026); een symposium en tentoonstelling rond wandelen als methodologie; bijdragen van studenten uit het hoger onderwijs; en een vierdaags publiek evenement in Prosperpolder met internationale kunstenaars en onderzoekers (mei 2027).

 

Het programma zal worden begeleid door een publicatie en een videodocumentaire.

 

Prosperpolder dorpsgemeenschap Beveren.

 

Prosperpolder is een internationale polder en een gehucht met ongeveer 200 inwoners, verdeeld tussen het deelgebied van Kieldrecht in de Oost-Vlaamse gemeente Beveren-Kruibeke-Zwijndrecht en het gehucht Prosperdorp in de Zeeuws-Vlaamse gemeente Hulst (Nederland). De polder werd ingedijkt in 1846. Het gehucht staat ook bekend als Prosper of Prosperdorp. Het ligt in het noorden van Kieldrecht, vlak bij de Nederlands-Belgische grens. Sinds 2013 bestaan er plannen om een groot deel van het Belgische gedeelte van de polder, ter hoogte van de Prosperhaven, om te vormen tot natuurgebied.

 

Het unieke landschap van Beveren, gekenmerkt door uitgestrekte wetlands, landbouwgebieden en de nabijheid van industriële zones (haveninfrastructuur en nucleaire installaties), biedt een krachtige context om de spanningen tussen natuur, verstedelijking en gemeenschap te onderzoeken. Deze dualiteit sluit nauw aan bij de thematische focus van the Milena Principle op plantenleven, plaatsgebonden herinnering en ecologische kunst.

Prosperpolder bevindt zich in het noordelijke deel van Beveren, nabij de Nederlandse grens en de stad Antwerpen. Dit historisch ingepolderde landschap staat bekend om zijn vlakke, open vergezichten en agrarische karakter. Het maakt deel uit van het Grenspark Groot Saeftinghe, een grensoverschrijdend natuur- en wetlandgebied dat gevormd werd door de rivier de Schelde.

 

Met de steun van de gemeente Beveren zullen de Belgische activiteiten binnen het kader van WALC (Walking Arts and Local Communities), hoofdzakelijk plaatsvinden in dit natuurgebied. Het initiatief zal de lokale gemeenschap actief betrekken, evenals verschillende culturele instellingen en organisaties die bijdragen aan het culturele leven van Beveren.

 

Food Forest Doel Beveren 2026

 

 

Lees het artikel van Walk Listen Create > >

 

 

 

 

 

 

WALC Exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Thessaloniki (2027)

In 2027, the Museum of Contemporary Art Thessaloniki will present a major overview exhibition offering insight into all European WALC projects.

 

Together with all European partners, work is underway on a special publication documenting the growth process and the projects realized. This catalogue is being designed by Miguel Bandeira Duarte and Natacha Antão Moutinho (University of Minho – School of Arts), Anna Maria Mestdagh, and Stefaan van Biesen of the Van Biesen–Mestdagh Foundation.

 

 

 

[Made of Walking] • Summerschools & internationale kunstenaars meetings:

 

• Summer school • Delphi Greece 2016.

• Summer school • Delphi Greece 2017.

• Table of Walks • La Romieu France 2017.

• Plant(e)cape • Akamas Neo Chorio Cyprus 2018.

• Walking Bodies • University of West Macedonia • Prespes Greece 2019.

• Drifting Bodies/Fluent Spaces • MINHO University • Guimaraes Portugal 2020.

• Walking as a question • University of West Macedonia • Prespes Greece 2021.

• MINHO University • Guimaraes Portugal 2022.

• WAC – Walking Arts Encounters/Conference • Prespa (Greece), 3-10 July 2023.

• walk·listen·create • School of Fine Arts/UOWM • Walking Visions/Visions for Walking 2023.

• The Walking Body • MINHO University • Guimaraes Portugal 2025.

• The Walking Body • MINHO University • Guimaraes Portugal 2026.

• Made Of Walking• Prosperpolder Beveren Belgium 2026-2027.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2025 > >

 

 

WALC [ Walking Artists Local Communities ]

Wij willen u graag informeren over recente en aankomende ontwikkelingen binnen WALC – Walking Arts & Local Communities.

 

WALC: Nau Côclea (Spanje), met de deelname van de Universiteit van Prespa | Universiteit van West-Macedonië (Griekenland), de Universiteit van Minho in Guimarães (Portugal), Gigacircus (Frankrijk), Walk Listen Create (België), en the Milena Principle | Van Biesen–Mestdagh Foundation.

 

 

WALC is een vierjarig Europees project (2024–2027) dat kunstenaars, onderzoekers en lokale gemeenschappen samenbrengt rond walking art: wandelen als artistieke, ecologische en sociale praktijk.

Het netwerk organiseert internationale bijeenkomsten, residenties, “walkshops” en gemeenschapsprojecten in diverse landschappen. De focus ligt op ecologie, lokale verhalen, sociale verandering en samenwerking tussen bewoners en kunstenaars. De activiteiten staan open voor zowel professionele kunstenaars als geïnteresseerde wandelaars.

 

Grand Jury SWS 2025.

Lid van de Grand Jury Walk Listen Create. Een maand lang geluidswandelingen en de prijs voor de beste geluidswandeling van 2025.

 

De Grand Jury is de uiteindelijke beslisser over welke geluidswandeling die in 2024/2025 bij WLC is ingediend, op basis van artistieke, technische, conceptuele en sociale criteria als “beste” wordt beschouwd. De uitslag voor SWS25 wordt rond het einde van het jaar / begin van het nieuwe jaar verwacht.

 

 

De SWS Awards “Sound Walk September Awards” worden georganiseerd door walk · listen · create (WLC), een wereldwijde gemeenschap voor “wandelkunst” en geluidswandelingen: wandelervaringen die worden verrijkt met audio, omgevingsgeluiden, verhalen, omgevingsopnames, enz.

 

Voor SWS25 heeft de “Online Jury” van WLC eerst naar alle inzendingen geluisterd en een shortlist van 14 geluidswandelingen geselecteerd. Deze geselecteerde werken worden vervolgens doorgegeven aan de Grand Jury, die na beraadslaging de uiteindelijke winnaar en eventueel een eervolle vermelding zal selecteren. walk · listen · create

 

 

 

The Walking Body | Minho Universiteit Guimarães, Portugal 2025.

 

 

 

 

 

The Walking Body (TWB) is een internationale bijeenkomst van walking artists. De editie van 2025 is gewijd aan “communities of change”: gemeenschappen die meervoudig zijn, in beweging, en gevoelig voor de sociale en natuurlijke ecologie van de omgeving waarin wij leven.

 

 

Photo Rosario Forjaz

 

Tell me your name is een performatieve wandeling en handeling waarbij je wilde planten (die groeien tussen tegels, langs muren of langs wegen) nieuwe namen geeft op basis van je eigen poëtische gevoel. Je negeert hun wetenschappelijke namen en benoemt ze in plaats daarvan intuïtief, waarbij je hun karakter, schoonheid of wat ze voor jou of anderen betekenen weerspiegelt.

 

 

Onkruid bestaat alleen in onze gedachten, planten die we niet in tuinen of parken cultiveren, krijgen die benaming. Deze oefening gebruikt deze planten als metafoor om je identiteit binnen de samenleving te verkennen, door jezelf te verbinden met een “onkruidplant” en te reflecteren op zijn plaats in de natuur en in onze sociale wereld.

 

 

TWB verkent lokale gemeenschappen als dynamische entiteiten in voortdurende transformatie, waarbij mensen, territoria en ecologieën met elkaar worden verbonden via beweging, de kunst van het wandelen en de relatie tussen de stad en het landschap van Guimarães. TWB vindt plaats van 26 maart tot 12 april in Guimarães, in Bairro C, met het ontmoetingspunt in de Garagem Avenida Gallery / School of Architecture, Art and Design.

 

 

TWB omvat een week met walkshops, een rondetafelgesprek met de uitgenodigde kunstenaars en een tentoonstelling (26 maart tot 17 april). Dit evenement is gratis toegankelijk. Iedereen die geïnteresseerd is in kunst en de handeling van het wandelen kan deelnemen aan deze activiteiten.

 

 

De walkshops vinden gedurende de hele week plaats van 7 tot 12 april, tijdens wandelingen in de omgeving met een focus op Bairro C. Het ontmoetingspunt is de Avenida EAAD Garage Gallery (Av. Dom Afonso Henriques 250).

Aan TWB nemen 7 kunstenaars deel aan de workshops: Geert Vermeire (BE), Jordi Lafon (ES), Miguel B Duarte (PT), Montsita Rierola (ES), Natacha Antão (PT), Stefaan Van Biesen (BE) en Rosa Soares (PT).

 

 

 

 

2024 > >

 

The Walking Body V | Guimaraes Portugal 2024.

 

 

 

 

Interview met Geert Vermeire

door Ellen Mueller 26 December 2023.

 

Ellen Mueller: Wat zijn je gedachten over wandelen als artistieke praktijk?

 

Geert Vermeire: Mijn praktijk van wandelkunst begon zo’n 20 jaar geleden, bijna toevallig, zonder dat ik toen wist dat er zoiets bestond als walking art, en zonder me ervan bewust te zijn dat wat ik deed daar zo sterk mee verbonden was. Dit embryonale begin was een collectieve activiteit: een wandeling die ik samen met mijn vriend Stefaan van Biesen bedacht, voor wie wandelen toen al meer dan tien jaar een essentieel onderdeel van zijn artistieke praktijk was (zonder het zo te benoemen als walking art).

 

We creëerden een wandeling in een arboretum, rond de equinox – wanneer de nacht op zijn traagst is – waarbij we liepen met handlantaarns, als verwijzing naar de filosoof Diogenes die overdag altijd met een lantaarn rondliep. Onze wandeling bewoog zich door een “bibliotheek van bomen”, waarbij we “tegelijkertijd de onzichtbare tekst van het landschap schreven en lazen door er samen doorheen te wandelen” (vrij naar De Certeau), in stilte, in een meer-dan-menselijke taal, wandelend met planten en als planten, luisterend, fluisterend, teksten lezend en gezamenlijk klankgedichten makend in de taal van bijen.

 

De wandeling werd het kunstwerk, en het kunstwerk werd gemaakt door zijn wandelaars. Het kunstwerk was een achtergrond, een muzikale partituur, die door de wandelaars werd geïnterpreteerd en getransformeerd. Deze ervaring van verschuiving, van loslaten, van het creëren van voorwaarden voor het onverwachte, en niet gericht zijn op productie—dat was vrijheid, onthuld door het wandelen.

 

Uiteindelijk bestaat er misschien niets vrijers dan wandelen: het verbruikt niets, het heeft niets nodig, en wanneer het samen gebeurt—op het juiste moment en op de juiste plek—kan het een metamorfose teweegbrengen waarbij wandelaars de wandeling worden en het landschap de wandelaars wordt.

Tegelijkertijd is walking art ook vreugde: de vreugde van verrassing, van verwondering, van samenzijn. Het is die vreugde die wandelen tot kunst maakt; vreugde is de katalysator.

 

 

 

2021 > >

 

 

Drifting Bodies – Fluent Spaces
Online meeting/conference on Walking Arts
Guimarães, Portugal | 21–25 July 2020

Organized by EAUM/Lab2PT/University of Minho – Made of Walking (VII)

 

Main themes:
Drift/psychogeography as subversive practice, urban play, risk
The fluid body and senses: (re)writing and (re)reading the city through the body
Emptiness and silence as transformative elements
Walking stories and their intermedia translations
invited:
Hybrid/online walkshops and walking performances
Digital artworks for online exhibition

To support the cultural community during the pandemic, conference fees are waived for freelancers without regular income or creatives who lost income. Affiliated researchers pay €40.
Submit proposals before May 15th to: walk.lab2pt@gmail.com

 

 

 

2020 > >

 

Made of Walking (VII) Drifting Bodies | Fluent Spaces.

Minho University Guimaraes Portugal 2020.

 

 

 

 

2019 > >

 

Made of Walking (VI) Sound Walk Sunday 2019.

Exploring Sound Walks - British Library / Knowledge Center - June 7th at 1.30 pm.

 

 

In the frame of Sound Walk Sunday 2019 in a partnership with Made of Walking (VI) Sao Paulo - London - Melbourne, an afternoon of presentations, videos and demonstrations of new approaches in sound walking at the British Library London. Following contributors were invited to share their ideas and practices, elaborating on contemporary evolutions and the future of sound walking : Joshua Kopeček, Marcin Barski, Babak Fakhamzadeh, Andrew Stuck, Stella Wisdom, Cheryl Tipp, Mahendra Mahey, NG Bristow, Alistair Horne, George Fort, Fred Adam and Vermeire Geert For this event a Sound Walk was created with CGeomap, in collaboration with NuSom - University of Sao Paulo. With soundscapes by Fabi Quintana, Henrique Souza Lima, Yonara Dantas, Migue Antar.

 

 

 

The book of the Walking Arts Encounters/Conference (WAC) 2019 is now available in print and digital formats. This full-color, 567-page publication features hundreds of photos and contributions from around the world. It covers themes like Walking Narratives, Crossing Borders, Walking and Place, Fine Arts of Walking, Long Journeys, Nature and the Anthropocene, Political Narratives, and Pedagogies of Walking. Due to its size and global scope, it is a key reference for anyone interested in 21st-century Walking Arts. Edited by Yannis Ziogas and Geert Vermeire, with design by Aspasia Voudouri. The digital version is available for a recommended donation of €20, and the printed book costs €50 plus shipping.

 

 

 

 

Made of Walking (VI) Sound and Ecology | Amazone Forest 2019.

 

Made of Walking (VI) Sound and Ecology calls on all interested to participate to a gathering and creative exchange in the Amazon Rainforest, between 8-14 September.

 

 

Made of Walking (VI) focuses on sound and ecology in collaboration with Sound Walk Sunday (1-8 September), a global community event celebrating sound walking through simultaneous, connected walks worldwide.

 

From 8-14 September, Made of Walking (VI) Sound and Ecology continues as eAmazonia, a global symposium on sustainable arts, science, and design. This immersive residency takes place in the Amazon rainforest and serves as a gathering, school, platform, and collaborative space for artists, creatives, researchers, and entrepreneurs interested in eco-arts and innovative design within the deep ecological context of the Amazon.

Participants will present artistic and scientific research, collaborate, and create projects and workshops related to sound walking and ecology.

 

Keynote activities and workshops led by mentors Flavia Amadeu, Tania Fraga, and Geert Vermeire will guide the six-day residency. Participants are invited to share knowledge and develop works in progress.

Outcomes will be exhibited in major art venues in São Paulo, London, and Miami, accompanied by an academic and artistic publication.

 

The symposium is accredited by IMATech-Institute for Arts, Technology and Mathematics in São Paulo, Brazil, and will help establish the eAmazonia network and future events. It will also form the foundation for a global online platform.

 

As the Amazon expedition involves significant costs, participants are responsible for securing their own funding.

The event is curated by artists Tania Fraga, Flavia Amadeu, and Geert Vermeire, who aim to address environmental issues through global and independent media. They seek to promote alternative images, ecological economies, and humane policies, challenging mainstream corporate agendas.

By uniting their artistic approaches, the curators foster a collaborative space to share practices, concerns, and solutions with others passionate about the Amazon Rainforest.

 

http://www.embraceamazonia.org/?fbclid=IwAR1Yvx8NbA2oK6P7PYBUvskKI-EXuT2Mtt32hzMtAeoeDXqc3HNUgQPA_5Q

 

 

 

 

Made of Walking (V) Walking Practices | Walking Art | Walking Bodies 2019.

 

Walking encounters/conference in Prespes Greece, July 1-7 2019. 30.06 > 07.07.2019. Walking Practices/Walking Art/Walking Bodies.Walking Arts Encounters Conference Prespes Greece. Department of Fine and Applied Arts of the University of Western Macedonia and Made of Walking (V) / theMilena Principle.

 

 

Made of Walking (V) is organized by the Department of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Western Macedonia, Greece, and takes place alongside the international conference “Walking Practices|Walking Art|Walking Bodies” in the Prespes area. This unique natural region, featuring two lakes and a complex history, lies on the borders with Albania and North Macedonia.

 

The theme “Walking bodies” refers to walking together, groups on the move, embodiment, nomadism, migration, and the concept of home.

 

Artists and walking creatives are invited to a week-long residency in the village of Parades to develop individual or group projects exploring walking in Prespes. The results will be exhibited at the Byzantine Museum of Agios Germanos and then travel as a nomadic exhibition worldwide. The residency concludes with a three-day international conference (July 5-7) in Lemos, focused on walking art and walking bodies.

The event is coordinated by Geert Vermeire and Yannis Ziogas, in collaboration with a global scientific and artistic committee. Applications for the residency and conference presentations are welcome.

 

 

Arrival for the residency June 28th to Sunday June 30th till July 7th. Arrival for the conference latest afternoon July 4th. Also attendees are welcome to participate. Registration is open from now on. Online info group sessions about the region will be organised monthly for artists/creatives desiring to prepare a specific walking project for the area.

 

For students limited free accomodation is available in the dormitory of the School of Fine Arts. Free camping facilities wiil be offered in the garden of the school and at the shore of the lake. Further accommodation (to be paid by the participants) available in guest rooms and hotels for prices starting at 25 euros/individual room/night. Flights to Thessaloniki and Athens, further transportation by bus/train.

 

More information and/or your expression of interest via personal message: themilenaprinciple@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

2018 > >

 

The Walking Body | School of Architecture [Minho University]

Guimaraes Portugal 15.10. > 19.10.2018.

 

 

 

 

The walking body A week of conferences, workshops and performances about walking and arts, open to the students and the public are planned in Guimarães and prepare an internation gathering Made of Walking in the Minho landscape of North Portugal later in 2019. The project is hosted by Lab2PT and EAUM Licenciatura em Artes Visuais (School of Architecture - Visual Arts) of the University of Minho and in partnership with the art collective The Space Transcribers and the Museum Nogueira da Silva.

 

It prepares collaborations between University of Western Macedonia - School of Fine Arts, the University of Wales - Arts and Performance Dept and the School of Architecture - Visual Arts of the University of Minho in a contemporary translation of the rural and natural landscapes throught the body and site specific arts, within the emotions and nomadic movements that define our actual anthropocene world, through questions that artists may rise and answers that they may have.

 

 

[Meander III] performance/walk with the students, Minho University.

Concept by Stefaan van Biesen & Annemie Mestdagh.

 

Made of Walking – Guimarães Meeting & Upcoming Prespes Gathering

The Guimarães meeting sets the stage for the fifth international Made of Walking event, titled The Walking Body. This will take place in July 2019 in Prespes National Park and the village of Prespes, West Macedonia, Greece—at the border of Greece, Macedonia, and Albania—as part of an international arts and walking conference organized by the University of Western Macedonia’s School of Fine Arts.

The event explores the dynamic interaction between body and landscape. Artists and cultural nomads treat the landscape as an open field for experience, where movement inspires ideas, concepts, and artwork. Walking through these environments evokes unique emotions that shape distinct forms of artistic expression.

 

Lectures & Conferences in Guimarães

 

Silent Walking / Augmented Walking — Geert Vermeire shares insights on silent and sound walks developed over the past decade, highlighting new technologies like sound devices, mobile phones, mobile video, and augmented reality. (In Portuguese)

Made of Walking / The Art of Walking in the Landscape — Geert Vermeire reflects on past editions in Greece, Cyprus, and France, emphasizing participatory practices and collaboration between artists, inhabitants, and curators. The discussion is framed by Spaziergangwissenschaft (Science of Walking), a discipline founded by Lucius Burckhardt. (In Portuguese)

Artist Talk: Stefaan van Biesen — Stefaan discusses his walking practice and its relation to digital media, sound, drawings, and performance, focusing on how thought manifests in environment and well-being. (In English)

Workshops & Performances in Guimarães

Augmented Walking (Geert Vermeire) — Participants learn sound walking techniques, recording and editing environmental sounds using free software and the Locosonic app. The workshop includes creating personalized sound walks, designing custom interfaces, and sharing online audio samples. locosonic.com

Meander (Stefaan van Biesen & Annemie Mestdagh) — A silent walk/performance exploring concepts of silence, time, body, and mind through Eastern and Western philosophies. Participants become part of the artwork through shared movement. Duration: 45 minutes, outdoors.

Wander Weed (Stefaan van Biesen & Annemie Mestdagh) — A performative walk with poetic readings (Letters to a Tree) shared among small groups, inviting reflection on nomadic art. Outdoors.

 

 

 

 

Made of Walking (IV) 2018 Neon Chorio |Akamas Peninsula Cyprus 29.06 < 08.07.2018.

 

 

Sites embodied | Nature Embodied 2018 is a continuation of the project Sites Embodied Cyprus during Pafos 2017: Plant(e)scape in the Akamas Peninsula

 

Pafos2017 focuses on the villages of Neon Chorio and Smigies in the Akamas Peninsula, hosting Made of Walking / Plant(e)scape in collaboration with Dance Gate Lefkosia, University of Nicosia Fine Arts, and Neapolis University Pafos School of Architecture.

 

The theme, Plant(e)scape, explores human motion and emotion within a rich botanical environment. It combines walking as a creative practice with two emerging fields: Spaziergangwissenschaft (Promenadology) and Critical Plant Studies (Vegetal Philosophy). Promenadology serves as a tool to investigate everyday environments and share knowledge, while Critical Plant Studies views plants as conscious, sentient beings—active agents in meaning-making rather than passive objects. This symbiotic perspective challenges anthropocentrism, inviting a vegetal point of view that enriches ecological, symbolic, and aesthetic understanding.

 

The event features live performances, workshops, lectures, and roundtables with established and emerging performance and walking artists alongside researchers.

 

Live Performances: Taking place throughout the landscape and countryside, involving both the public and local residents.

Workshops: Led by artists for the general public, local communities, and students across participating institutions.

Public Talks & Conferences: Open to all interested attendees.

An international digital platform will extend the event globally during and after the gathering, offering streaming and live podcasts connected to the Made of Walking and Talking Walking / Museum of Walking networks.
Concept Simona Vermeire.

 

 

 

 

 

2017 > >

 

 

Walking on, after Made of Walking in Delphi and in Le Romieu in Summer 2017. 80 artists, dancers, movement artists, composers, sound artists, theatre artists, writers, poets, researchers and other walking experts/practitioners from literally around the world found each other in the Greek Parnassos and in the French Midi Pyrenees to share, to learn, to question, and to gather. One conclusion emerged: walking is a yes in our world, walking is utopic. Walking works. Marcher, ça marche.

 

 

 

Made of Walking | Geert Vermeire and the art of walking the urban landscape.

 

Geert Vermeire: Urban Emptiness & Made of Walking

Geert Vermeire presents key highlights from his 20-year art and walking practice: Urban Emptiness and Made of Walking.

Urban Emptiness is a collaborative project uniting artists, dancers, architects, and researchers to explore the hidden, silent, and imaginary aspects of cities like Brussels, Athens, Nicosia, New York, and Tirana through critical and utopian perspectives.

Made of Walking brings together walking artists and experts in rural pilgrimage landscapes (such as Delphi and the Way of Santiago) to investigate how perception shapes the landscape, revealing its unique qualities and potentials.

 

Vermeire is a Belgian curator, writer, and artist with a background in musicology and performance arts. His interdisciplinary work focuses on mixed reality in movement, sound, and text-based public art, emphasizing the ethical dimensions of cultural practice. His projects span Albania, Greece, Portugal, Brazil, and the US.

This program is presented in partnership with walkBoston, a nonprofit dedicated to enhancing pedestrian environments across Massachusetts.

 

 

 

 

Made of Walking | Table of Walks walking artists La Romieu France: 27.08.2017 > 01.09 2017.

 

 

Table of Walks
Initiated by the Milena principle (Belgium), Table of Walks is a multidisciplinary project exploring walking as an artistic and cultural practice. Its pilot year featured the Summer School of Walking in Delphi, Greece — a forum combining walks and workshops that fostered dialogue across performance, arts, literature, and new media. The event brought together 100 participants, including 25 walking artists and experts from the US, Australia, Singapore, South Africa, Egypt, Israel, India/France/UK, Portugal, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, Cyprus, and Greece.

 

The La Romieu Forum, co-curated by Isabelle Clermont, Gilles Malatray (Desartssonnants, Lyon), and Geert Vermeire (Milena principle / Urban Emptiness Network), in collaboration with Robin Decourcy (TrekDance) and Andrew Stuck (Museum of Walking / Walking Artist Network UK), is hosted by the artistic organization Le Bouc qui Zouke and the municipality of La Romieu. This forum aims to create connections between researchers and artists focused on walking practices, with CRESSON Grenoble as an academic partner.

 

Theme:
“Sometimes we walk on the ground, sometimes on sidewalks or asphalt, or other surfaces. Can we find ground to walk on and listen for the sound or sounds of ground? Are we losing ground? Can we find new ground by listening for it?” — Pauline Oliveros, October 22, 2016.

 

 

 

 

Sound Walk Sunday | Open Call for Contributions

On Sunday, 27 August, we launch Sound Walk Sunday, a global event initiated by Made of Walking in La Romieu, in collaboration with Andrew Stuck and the Museum of Walking. We invite you to share your audio, geo-located, immersive performances, or sound walks to help us build a global directory and map in time for the event.

 

We’re seeking artists, performers, and producers who have created audio walking pieces — past or present. Even archived works are welcome, as well as current pieces that the public could experience on Sound Walk Sunday.

 

Please contribute by filling out our simple submission form here:
http://www.museumofwalking.org.uk/events/sound-walk-sunday/

 

Do you have budget, time, or networks we can connect with in the weeks leading up to 27 August? Can we join a show or write a blog to share our goals? Get in touch — we’re currently supported by volunteers.

Our vision is to crowdsource a worldwide collection of walking pieces. While early directories emerged during the rise of Web 2.0 and geo-located media, few comprehensive maps exist today despite the ease of creating new works. Sound Walk Sunday aims to revive this effort and offer a popular platform for digitally enhanced walking experiences.

 

 

 

 

Bom Fim Talk Rosária Forjaz & Stefaan van Biesen | Made Of Walking (III) La Romieu France 2017.

 

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A Bom Fim conversation between the Portugese artist Rosário Forjaz and Stefaan van Biesen (Belgium) about the art project 'Meander' and 'the Library of Walks' in the Escola Artistica de Soares dos Reis in Porto 2019 by Stefaan van Biesen & Annemie Mestdagh.

 

Also a conversation about their contribution and performative walks: ['Light Walk' and 'Enter The Triangle'] during Made of Walking (III) in La Romieu France August 2017, an international meeting of artists who work on the theme of 'walking'. Camera: Annemie Mestdagh / the Milena principle 2019. Time: 21:53.

 

 

 

 

Listening: On The Architecture of Aging | Made of walking La Romieu 28.08.2017.

ARTIFACTS : Pam Patterson & Leena Raudvee [CAN].

Registration and video by Stefaan van Biesen/the Milena principle.

 

 

 

 

 

Midamble | Peter Jaeger [CAN/UK] Made of Walking La Romieu France 30.08.2017.

 

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Midamble | 31.08.2017
Excerpt from a durational walk & reading performance by Peter Jaeger (CAN/UK) during Made of Walking at La Romieu, France, 2017.

Location: Le Lavoir (historic washing place)
Text and performance: © Peter Jaeger

Video: © Stefaan van Biesen / the Milena principle

Midamble is a lengthy text composed at sacred sites and pilgrimage routes across Asia, Europe, North America, North Africa, and the Middle East. The durational reading-performance is staged along the Camino route, engaging in dialogue with the natural sounds, walkers, and pilgrims over several hours—mirroring the time required to traverse long-distance paths.

 

 

 

 

Enter the Triangle Stefaan van Biesen [B] Made of Walking La Romieu France 2017.

 

 

Enter the Triangle. 27.08 > 30.08.2017. A silent meditative walk/performance for 3 walkers, during Made of Walking La Romieu 2017. With Annelies Vantyghem (B), Niran Baibulat (FIN), Rosario Forjaz (PT), Andrew Stuck (UK), Mel Sutton (UK), Ivana Pinna (IT/ES), Guendouz Nawal (ALGERIA/ FR), Carol Mancke (US), Phillip Mckenzie (UK), Leo Kay (B/UK), Pam Patterson (CAN), Leena Raudvee (CAN), Ruth Roadbent (UK).

 

Enter the Triangle (Silent Movements)
Enter the Triangle is a gentle walking performance for three participants focused on listening to and responding to each other’s bodily movements. It explores how we relate to another’s physical language, fostering awareness of both the others and the urban environment.

The performance highlights the simultaneous connection and disconnection we experience—being able to touch while remaining distant. It serves as a mental exercise in trust and presence, where the three moving bodies flow together to form a constantly shifting human sculpture: a living triangle shaped by interaction.

 

 

 

 

Made of Walking 2017 | La Romieu France 27.08 > 01.09.2017.

 

 

 

Made Of Walking 2017, La Romieu France | 27.08 > 01.09.2017

We are pleased to invite you to the inauguration of a Point d’ouïe followed by the roundtable discussion “On the Proper Use of Walking” and the Talking Walking Salon on August 30 at 6:30 pm in the town hall of La Romieu. Participants include Gilles Malatray (Desartsonnants), Jules Desgouttes and Fred Ortuno (Artfactories/Autresparts), Nawal Guendouz (University of Lyon), Andrew Stuck (Museum of Walking), and international artists.

 

Made of Walking is originally a traveling school, a pedagogical platform, and an international nomadic festival focusing on interdisciplinary walking practices. These initiatives bring together walking artists and experts who explore walking through artistic, philosophical, and research-based approaches.

 

 

 

 

2017 > >

 

Made of Walking (II) the Milena principle summerschool Delphi Greece 10.07 > 23.07.2017.

 

https://animartgreece.eu/2017/en/events/13/

 

 

10th of July to 24th of July, Delphi Greece 2017.

 

Animart Experiential Arts School and Forum of Contemporary Artists
In collaboration with the Milena Principle, Animart organizes a forum featuring walks and walking workshops that explore the intersections of performance, arts, literature, and new media. Artists, writers, walkers, performers, musicians, composers, sound designers, new media artists, developers, teachers, researchers, experts, and scientists from diverse fields and countries—including the US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, South Africa, Egypt, Israel, India, France, the UK, Portugal, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, Cyprus, and Greece—come together to share experiences and explore walking practices.

 

The 10th Animart Experiential Arts School and Forum for Contemporary Artists will take place in Delphi from July 10–24, 2017, in collaboration with the Athens School of Fine Arts (Greece), Bezalel Academy of Arts & Design (Jerusalem, Israel), and the Milena Principle (Belgium). This event brings together academics, students, experts, and renowned artists from Greece and abroad.

 

The Milena Principle is an international platform and artistic research lab focused on interdisciplinary practices in performance arts and new media, with special attention to ecology, sound, science, society, and awareness.

Made of Walking, organized by the Milena Principle during Animart, includes screenings, workshops, and conferences centered on walking as a creative practice. The program invites students, (emerging) artists, writers, walkers, performers, musicians, composers, sound designers, new media artists, developers, teachers, and researchers to engage in dialogue and share their experiences. Performances and projects will take place in outdoor venues such as the courtyard of the Delphi Archaeological Museum, the archaeological site of Delphi, and Delphi village.

 

Animart Greece: https://animartgreece.eu/2017/en/news/7/

 

The Milena principle:

Annemie Mestdagh: https://animartgreece.eu/2017/en/tutors/mestdagh/

Stefaan van Biesen: https://animartgreece.eu/2017/en/tutors/biesen/

Geert Vermeire: https://animartgreece.eu/2017/en/tutors/vermeire/

 

 

 

 

Enter the Triangle Made of Walking (I)] summerschool Delphi Greece 20.07 > 21.07.2017.

 

 

 

Enter the Triangle performance Made of Walking Delphi Animart Summer School 2017.

 

Enter the Triangle. Performance for 3 walkers and dancers during Made of Walking Delphi 2017. Concept and video: Stefaan van Biesen/ the Milena principle. Attribute made by Annemie Mestdagh / the Milena principle. Performers: Lina Efstathiou, Eleni Nakou, Julia Redei, Penny Finiri, Leand Kalaja, Panagiotis Lezes, Aliki Arnaouti, Ioanna Thanou - Mikro Skordopsomo, Chara Tzoka, Marianna Makri, Vermeire Geert and Haris Pellapaisiotis.

 

 

 

 

The Tortoise and the Spider | a walking harp, Delphi 23 juli 22:48.

 

 

Made of Walking Delphi 2017 centered on outdoor movement practices combined with new technologies and live electronics, exploring collaborative sound and movement within walking “webs” of people. Ros Bandt, Jon Drummond, Geert Vermeire, and Katerina Drakopoulou worked with movement artists and dancers to create a giant illuminated “people spider” aeolian harp. Connected by strings, this human harp was played and moved at night, with portable speakers and sound elements attached to the performers.

 

The performance involved creating a “human harp”—a group moving in connection—and a tortoise harp that played the connecting strings, resonating with the ground and surrounding landscape.

 

This work continues as a digital platform linking walker-webs worldwide. The project evolves walking as sound waves and webs, aiming to unfold footsteps that generate a sound score reflecting the dialogue between humans and the earth. Ultimately, it proposes an ecological “sculpture” of the earth through these walking webs, creating an orphic mapping of erratic places and spaces.

 

Dancers/movement artists: Katerina Drakopoulou, Lina Efstathiou, Aliki Sea Georgoulopoulou, Medea Kastanou, Marianna Makri, Eleni Nakou, Eleutheria Rapti, Julia Redei, Nefeli Stamatogiannopoulou, Ioanna Thanou / Mikro Skordopsomo, Chara Tzoka Art work / Found Threads: Alexandra Pambouka.

 

 

 

 

Found Threads | Made of Walking Amfissa 2017

Alexandra Pambouka, Cyprus. July 17- 23, 2017.

 

 

Human beings have always moved for survival or progress. Memories, customs, and traditions are their only heritage—Home.

 

In times of change, traditional patterns no longer repeat themselves exactly. One can “knit” their own history by using “found threads” shaped by personal measures. The artwork becomes ever-changing, like humanity itself. It can adapt to any space—rolled, stretched, or packed in a suitcase—and will appear differently with each exhibition. The installation process can be performative and public, inviting the audience to add their own woven pieces. Thus, the artwork becomes a socially engaged practice.

 

Inspired by Amfissa’s urban and natural environment and its history, Alexandra creates an installation using weaving techniques. The project is interactive, inviting Amfissa’s residents to contribute woven pieces to the existing work Found Threads.

 

A participative art work by Alexandra Pambouka during Made of Walking Delphi 2017.

 

 

 

 

2016 > >

 

Made of Walking (I) the Milena principle summerschool Delphi Greece 16.07 > 24.07.2016.

 

 

As a pilot project within the Animart Experiential Arts School and Forum of Contemporary Artists, the Milena principle organizes a forum featuring walks and walking workshops that foster dialogue between performance, arts, literature, and new media. The forum invites artists, writers, walkers, performers, musicians, composers, sound designers, new media artists, developers, teachers, researchers, experts, and scientists from diverse fields to share experiences and explore walking practices together.

 

Contributors come from the US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, South Africa, Egypt, Israel, India/France/UK, Portugal, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, Cyprus, and Greece.

 

The 10th ANIMART – Experiential Arts School and Forum for Contemporary Artists will take place in Delphi from July 16–24, 2016, in collaboration with the Athens School of Fine Arts (Greece), Bezalel Academy of Arts & Design (Jerusalem, Israel), and the Milena principle (Belgium), bringing together academics, students, experts, and renowned artists from Greece and abroad.

 

The Milena principle is an international platform and research lab focused on interdisciplinary practices in performance arts and new media, with a special interest in ecology, sound, science, society, and awareness.

 

 

 

Walking performance by Adonis Volanakis (New York/Athens).

 

Made Of Walking is organized by the Milena principle during ANIMART, with a series of screenings, workshops and conferences relating to walking, focussing on dialogues between performance, arts, literature and new media, inviting students, (young) artists, writers, walkers, performers, musicians and composers, sound designers, new media artist, developers, teachers, experts and scientists of different fields, to share their experiences. Projects/performances are meant for following outdoor venues: yard of the Delphi Archeological Museum, the archeological site of Delphi and Delphi village.

 

 

 

 

2015 > >

 

Reading the moment [Walking - Observing - Sensing - Being] Athens Greece 2015.

 

 

Reading the Moment is a collective walking experience through the streets of Athens, inviting participants to explore place and space without expectation—allowing their bodies to archive personal versions of the city. Born from a spontaneous convergence of people, practices, and ideas, this initial exploration is a collaboration between Geert Vermeire, Stefaan Van Biesen, and Marielys Burgos Meléndez. It takes place within the framework of Episodes of Urban Emptiness: Real and Imaginary Explorations of Silence in the Contemporary City in Edinburgh, Brussels, and Athens.

 

“There is so much to discover in every step. The ordinary becomes extraordinary. Attention shifts to awareness. Let’s walk together and wonder around... We are the space we inhabit. Have we looked at it carefully? We move and so does our relationship with our world. Let’s (re)encounter our place. We become the place.”

 

Geert Vermeire is a Belgian curator, artist, and writer working between Athens, Lisbon, and Brussels. His work explores ‘the body as a unit of measurement,’ using the senses and body as tools for knowledge, experience, and creativity, with an emphasis on social practice, community, and ethical cultural action.

 

Stefaan Van Biesen is a Belgian visual and sound artist and writer, whose work focuses on walking as a tool for knowledge and artistic creation.

 

Marielys Burgos Meléndez is an independent artist and researcher from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Her multidisciplinary practice spans dance, performance, video art, and creative writing. Her current research, ISLA en FUGA, explores themes of mobility and survival through dislocation.