11 march 2024, Wouter van den Eijkel
The studio of... Britte Koolen
Britte Koolen has a studio in De Nijverheid, a breeding ground for artists in Utrecht. She walks to her studio daily and during these walks, tries to be aware of her surroundings. Lots of ideas come to her while walking, which she then develops into minimalist sculptures and installations.
The idea for the work she created for (Hidden) Trophies originated during a residency in Portugal. Koolen forced herself to choose a different approach by not working in the colour red for a month and not visiting the woodworking studio. She created sculptures with objects she found on the old PADA industrial site. Back in her studio, she transformed them into installations. "I discovered that this allowed me to draw attention to things that are normally beyond our field of vision. For example, a found distributor cap became part of a new sculpture. The biggest difference from my previous work is that the shape of an existing object is already determined."
Britte Koolen's work, along with that of Tim Wunderink, can still be seen this week at Galerie Bart in Amsterdam.
Where is your studio and what does it look like?
My studio is in Utrecht. It is part of De Nijverheid, a cultural breeding ground established by and for artists. Together with 13 other artists, I share a warehouse where we each have our own studio. We share the space around it and in this shared space, we have set up a woodworking and metalworking shop.
Britte Koolen, Untitled 6, 2023, Galerie Bart
For painters, natural light is often a dealbreaker in a studio. You make sculptures and sculptural installations, so what is a must for you?
Space is very important for me. I want to be able to create both large and smaller sculptures/installations without being limited by the space. The great thing about the warehouse is that we can work outside our studio when working on large projects. Another must is to have access to a (shared) woodworking shop.
What does a typical day in your studio look like?
Every morning, I walk to my studio. At the end of the day, I also walk back home. During these walks, I try to be aware of my surroundings and ideas often come to me while walking. After my residency at PADA, these walks have become even more important. My days spent in the studio during a project are very different from when I can experiment and do research. When I'm in the middle of a project, I often start working right away: sanding, sawing and lots of varnishing. I enjoy doing physical work. During quiet periods, I experiment a lot with sketches and small shape studies.
Britte Koolen, Untitled 4, 2022, Galerie Bart
Your work has a very minimalist visual language. Where did this originate?
To me, my minimalist visual language represents silence and tranquillity. When I was young, I sometimes felt very overwhelmed by things and was always looking for something in the space I could disappear into, whether it was a piece of gum on the ground or a hole in the wall. I focused on that and then disappeared from the space for a while. I get that same feeling when making my installations. It's a way to create order in chaos. I also try to draw attention to the small things that may not immediately get noticed. I don't mind that my work often doesn't stand out at first, because when people walk by a second time, they discover all the details hidden in my work.
The press release states that during your residency at PADA in Portugal, you developed a new approach. Can you explain how this new way of working differs from your previous approach?
Before starting the residency, I had set some rules for myself. I was not allowed to use the woodworking shop and I also didn't want to use the colour red for that entire month. I wanted to challenge myself to find a different way of working. An important part of the PADA residency is the Industrial Park. As a resident, you are challenged to use this park to create new work or do new research. Every day, I walked around the factory grounds looking for usable materials. Once back in my studio, I transformed them into new sculptures. I discovered that this allowed me to draw attention to things that are normally beyond our field of vision: for example, a found distributor cap became part of a new sculpture. The biggest difference from my previous work is that the shape of an existing object is already determined.
Britte Koolen, Untitled (PADA 2), 2024, Galerie Bart
Your work is currently on display at Galerie Bart along that of Tim Wunderink. You’ve worked with found objects for this show and set yourself the condition that the objects had to be intact and round. Is that a method you use often?
I always try to make my sculptures without imperfections. This way, there is no distraction and it gives you the opportunity to view the work as a whole in the space. By requiring that the objects be intact, I could pursue the same goal. My visual language is geometric and this is no different from the work at PADA.
Is there an overlap between Tim's work and yours?
During the residency in Portugal, I began working with found objects. This has always played an important role in Tim's work. So, in this exhibition, our approaches overlap.
Britte Koolen, Untitled (PADA 1), 2024, Galerie Bart
You are now 30 and at the beginning of your career. What are your plans for the next five or so years?
In recent years, I have discovered that I can increasingly rely on my visual language and the role played by the right composition in it. This allows me to take more risks with my modular installations. I create the sculptures in my studio and only on location do I determine the final installation. So, you might say that I already work partly in situ. In the next five years, I would like to take this a step further. I want to experiment with new materials and I hope to have taken my first steps towards creating a work for public space.
What are you currently working on?
Right now, I'm busy with a new modular wall installation for the exhibition Abstracte Abstracten (second part of the series Abstracte Narratieve Vorme, at Galerie Ecker – Breda) that is opening on 8 March. in the summer of 2025, I have an outdoor exhibition in Belgium. Where I will be showing a series of new outdoor sculptures. I'm already working on that. I'm also working on transitioning to a new material: ceramics. And in May, I will be leaving De Nijverheid and moving into a new, larger studio.
Britte Koolen, Untitled (PADA 4), 2024, Galerie Bart
