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Live at Centraal Museum

J.T. Boogaard

For this performance J.T. Boogaard (Jasper Boogaard, 1997) tailor made a liveset surrounding The Botanical Revolution. Field recordings from both his own archive and public domain form the backbone of a set filled with drones, effects and a small arp. 

Boogaard is a composer and producer based in Rotterdam. Together with R. M. van der Meulen he released their joint album PLACE on Utrecht based label No Hay Banda, 6.15’s predecessor. Amidst the pandemic the two came together to a small home studio with a handful of noise making machines and the field recordings they made along the way. Two friends on a quest through live improvisation to seek balance between tension and endless rest.

The show was part of Centraal Laat, the evening program by Centraal Museum which combines the museum’s art together with other cultural instances from the city. For this edition the exhibition ‘The Botanical Revolution’ stood central, together with musical acts curated by EKKO.

Centraal Museum

The Centraal Museum Utrecht is the oldest municipal museum in the Netherlands. The Centraal Museum was founded in 1838 and is housed in a former medieval cloister. Centraal Museum lets you discover stories that originate in Utrecht or connect to the world from Utrecht. It also shows how the world seeks to connect with Utrecht. The museum does this on the basis of the five collection profiles: modern art, contemporary art, early art, urban history and fashion & costumes. At the Centraal Museum, you will be enriched by art and culture from our world of Utrecht.

EKKO

EKKO is Utrecht’s venue for upcoming and promising (niche) acts. Right from the start in 1986 EKKO seeks renewal, quality and relevance in their program. In their café, EKKO also offers an affordable and tasty menu with vegetables playing a leading role. It’s also a nice place to sit down and relax for a little bit before you head to the next performance. EKKO is run mostly by volunteers.

The Botanical Revolution

In this age of climate crisis, the relationship between man and nature is under tremendous strain. More and more artists are shifting their focus to the garden. Raising critical questions about the way nature is being subdued and exploited, they call for a radical reshaping of our relationship with nature. It is time for a botanical revolution!

Gardens have appealed to our imagination for centuries. We associate them with harmonious bliss, a place to witness the cycle of life and death, a place of contemplation, and a refuge from the worries and cares of daily life. And certainly in these times of being cooped up at home, there is a strong desire to have one’s own bit of greenery.

The botanical revolution, on the necessity of art and gardening is the story of the garden as a fertile source of inspiration for artists. Throughout the centuries, artists, writers, poets and philosophers have described, depicted and defined the garden in constantly changing ways. Gerrit Komrij – whose 1990 Huizinga lecture is the source of the exhibition title – described how, for much of history, the idea of the garden was closely interrelated with changing mentalities and intellectual controversies. Gardens remain a rich source of inspiration for contemporary art, though the prevailing theme is no longer romantic longing but a call to reshape our relationship with the earth. How do today’s artists reflect on themes such as primeval paradise, vegetable gardens, botany and climate change? Surprising classic and modern examples reveal the deep roots of the exhibition’s themes.

The concept of the garden as a microcosm, a mirror of the world, has a very long history. Many cultures and religions see gardens as harmonious, secluded places of refuge. Take the Garden of Eden, for example: the first paradise. The Botanical Revolution reveals the similarities between past and present and explains the views of contemporary art on gardens and nature.

Herman Justus Kruyder, Het Paradijs, 1914