Episode 8: The artist, the curator, and participatory kinship

Welcome to our podcast series, Think Tank Sessions: On Experiencing Art in Public Space.This podcast emerges from engaging workshops conducted across various Belgian locations.

How do you turn public space into a place where people truly meet each other?
In this special edition of the podcast Think Tank: Experiencing Art in Public Space, we explore how art, dialogue, and participation are transforming our cities into meaningful meeting places. Katrien Laenen outlines, based on her years of experience—17 years with the Flemish Building Master Team and 8 years with Art on Commission (Department of Culture)—how public art projects have evolved towards a more participatory approach. Artist duo Ivo Provoost & Simona Denicolai share surprising strategies to engage communities in a playful and authentic way. Mark Pozlep and Danielle van Zuijlen discuss how art festivals can be engines for lasting connection, collaboration, and social engagement. How does the idea of kinship—relationship and dialogue—play a central role in this?

This episode was specially recorded for the city festival  Openbare werken (Public Works) under the City Hall in Ghent. Building on previous Think Tank sessions, this conversation brings together artists, architects, students, and theorists to explore how art can socially and spatially enrich our urban environments, thereby stimulating an engaged dialogue with public space.

Openbare Werken (Public Works) takes place from Friday 9  to Sunday 18 May 2025, and is organized by the Tot in de stad! network: a collaboration between Ghent-based organizations VIERNULVIER, Kunsthal Gent, De Koer, Manoeuvre, Jong Gewei, Campusatelier, and the art schools LUCA and KASK. 

Concept and realisation: Angelique Campens
Sound and montage: Raf Enckels

Chapters

• 0:07 Intro to the think tank & public space – focus on kinship and participation
• 1:31 Katrien Laenen on the evolution of public art policy in Flanders
• 8:22 Simona Denicolai & Ivo Provoost introduce their participatory practice and artistic philosophy
• 12:58 What can we call a public space?
• 16:00 The commemorative cake project – working with local stories and trauma
• 24:29 Community reactions to the cake project – from skepticism to co-authorship
• 28:09 Danielle van Zuijlen on how the Openbare Werken (Public Works) festival embodies kinship through collaboration
• 32:12 Mark Pozlep on exploring Ghent’s waterways with a custom-built boat
• 36:40 Question on architects and participatory design – Katrien Laenen on shifts in architectural practice
• 40:52 On navigating public expectations and artistic freedom in participatory processes.
• 45:40 Curiosity and honesty as guiding principles when working with the public
• 51:22 Making art approachable, accessible, and playful while staying political
• 55:50 Katrien on artistic mediation and the need for intermediaries in public projects
• 56:22 Danielle van Zuijlen on the difference between the festival Openbare werken and commissioned art
• 58:44 Simona & Ivo on transforming documentation into new artworks