S+T+ARTS4Water II Challenge and STARTS Residency

Honoré d’O – Keeping Heterotopia Afloat. Experiments in Modal Shift

Host / Region

Abstract

This residency challenges artists to reimagine the Brussels canal and Flemish waterways, promoting a cultural shift from land-based transport to water-based alternatives, aiming to inspire ecological and socio-cultural transformations in waterway and port areas.

Keywords

modal shift, sustainable transport, water recycling, river transport

Description of the regional challenge

The Brussels Port, situated within the City of Brussels in the Brussels-Capital Region120 kilometers away from the coastline accommodates ships and convoys of up to 9,000 tonnes and serves as a vital hub for regional connectivity across 14 km of canal. By the Brussels–Scheldt Maritime Canal, even ocean-faring vessels can access the outer port, while the Brussels–Charleroi Canal ensures transit to Wallonia.

Through several projects the Flemish waterway authorities, the port and the city of Brussels as well as other local and international partners are aiming at an expansion of sustainable transport per water to reduce transport on roads. These Modal Shift processes are often slow-paced and difficult to implement due to a variety of technical, economical and industrial reasons. One underestimated problem here is how societal and cultural norms favor traditional modes of transportation.

How is the mission S+T+ARTS driven?

Artists are called to envision and create collaborative works along the canal of Brussels and across the Flemish waterways, playfully and engagingly inspiring cultural transformations of transport away from car-on-land onto the waterways. Stimulate community encounters to raise awareness for sustainability actions and systemic changes regarding waterways and port areas.

On how many levels could a creative ‘canal of change’ have positive ecological and socio-cultural impact?

Artist-in-residency – Honoré d’O

Honoré d’O (1961, Oudenaarde as Raf Van Ommeslaege and 1984, Gent as Honoré d’O) installations are one-off compositions of ordinary materials and objects without the least technical pretension. He constantly introduces new objects found by chance and thereby blurs the boundary between the work of art and the commonplace. Honoré δ’O’ s associative and humorous approach leads to sprawling installations with a particularly open character. The visitor is immersed in his poetic world, interacts with it, and thus becomes part of the work. δ’O’s installations manifest themselves as a web of underlying meanings and connections, in which reality continually changes into art and vice versa.

About The Project – Keeping Heterotopia Afloat. Experiments in Modal Shift

A procession of drones and people aims to transport food from a floating platform on the Brussels Canal. This work builds on the results of a previous STARTS residency by Futurefarers, who created a platform that brings food from the Brussels hinterland to the city. The procession invites reflection on the intricate relationship between humans and machines, art and farming, fragility and strength. The drones, hovering like halos, subtly alter the perception of the participants, evoking a contemporary version of the saints depicted in ancient art. This interplay raises questions about control and dependence: Are the drones guiding the performers, or are the performers leading the drones? The dance between human and machine blurs these boundaries, suggesting a future where technology and humanity are inextricably linked.