All language subtitles for Lezing Solo SRT

Hi, everyone.

I am Asia Komarova.

I'm part of the group called The Outsiders.

And together with Classical Art Institute in Utrecht.

We founded the Traveling Farm Museum,

and I'm going to tell you the story of

actually the never ending story of a farm.

somewhere in 2018

We were wondering our neighborhood

that was or it's until now, Leidsche Rijn in Utrecht,

and there was a lot of construction going on.

So at the moment as well and the farmers were

cleaning up, let's say, their farms and moving somewhere else

and me and my friend Jay,
that should be here,

but is not here,
but I talk for her as well.

We entered a farm because there was no barrier.

And we decided, let's
go to see what's going on there.

And we talked to the farmer
and he told us that

he had a court case
with the municipality 'gemeente Utrecht'.

And because he was forced to leave

so that the neighborhood would expand

and that he was cleaning up the farm
but also moving the animals.

So there were some cows and some horses.

But the guy was coming to pick them up
and move them somewhere else.

And then we started talking a little bit
about the situation.

And he told us that he was born in the farm
as his father,

but because somewhere in the eighties,
they decided to build

housing for around

80,000 people,

all the farmers in that area had to move.

So he was not the only one and they had been

bought out by the municipality.

In his case, the municipality had promised

a specific amount of budget,
but they didn't give it at the end.

So there was this farm- house

that had around 500 years of history
in and around it.

They were building a shopping mall,
so it was a bit weird

because a farm without land, it's
not a farm its just a house.

But then it's there for 500 years,
so you cannot

demolish it, It's a monument Before that,
it was a castle.

Before that,
there were some nuns washing the clothes

for rich people in Utrecht.

So there is a lot
of history in this building.

But then

the value of this history was somehow lost

by building the shopping all around it.

So we thought,
we went to occupy this farm until we can

and we agreed with the farmer
that we can use it.

And so we start to open the door.

I think probably it's very similar
to this exhibition.

We opened the door empty handed
and we slowly,

gradually

started to build up things there.

Inviting all the neighbors,
think ecologically together,

and anyone that would propose anything

would then

participate somehow.

So we had the shop, we had gardens.

Some people start to plant hop and brew beer.

Then more neighbors were coming

with different backgrounds.

So we had like a dancing group and

it was a meeting place
that was not commercial and that was needed.

And it is until now needed in
our neighborhood because every public space

is commercial It's only about shopping

or having a terrace for coffee or.

But there is not really
like somewhere you can just

hang out

like it feels like it's forbidden in a way.

And in 2020

the farmer won the case,

so we need to leave the farm because now it's

being bought by developers.

That were going to build luxury apartments

and we start wondering what to do

because we have the network of people
and people with the same needs.

So we decided we're going to be mobile,
we're going to be a mobile museum

and we need to be a museum of the way

of living off the farm that's why

we thought it's important to show people
not to forget who we are.

How to live in a way

seasonally so in the winter more chill

and then spring start
to work, summer work harder and

in autumn harvest and food preservation

and all this kind of,

let's say, natural form of living

more human.

So people in the neighborhood
would not forget by just going to

the supermarket, let's say, to buy food,
and come back to work on the computer.

And then we decided

with our mobile installation to visit

the only active farmers existing in the area

and people could follow us,

so we took an old bread bike.

So also not so many years ago
there were these bikes

going through the neighborhood saying brood-
banquette and gebak or something like that.

And then people would just open the bike
and there is bread in it.

So we put some art, some books,

some food, and then every Saturday we would

make a tour so people would join us.

For example, one of the first was 'Food
Forest' in the neighborhood,

and it's a very nice dynamic group

because we would have art students coming,
but also some neighbors,

some people that are interested
in different way

of food accessibility.

Also the friends of the farmers.

So there's this dialog of like people
that would not usually come together,

and we thought we it felt right.

It felt good. So

we visited.

We are not like super selective,

but we try to visit the farmers
that are a bit in transition.

So 'Food Forest' and like a big

garden, it's called "moestuin",
but it's actually huge

from Old Castle,
so it's used to serve a castle

but now it's for everybody
that's part of the garden can also have food

and dairy
farmer that decide to be smaller and

rent half of his space
to artists for ateliers why not...

And since he's selling his meat on Instagram
so you can buy a leg, for example,

from him or like also what
you would not have in the supermarket, right.

All the parts of the animal.

Somebody that is working

for 'Campina' but wanted to

downscale and has build a milktab,
so people can go in and take milk.

And he sells milk
that 'Campina' doesn't sell, so pure.

Let's say the one that gives you
the white mustache

and etcetera.

So we spend the whole summer

visiting the farmers,

and we actually realize that we sort of build

a school for ourselves
because by doing these trips,

we learned a lot of things that we
didn't know if we would just stay in the city

and imagine farming
instead of going to the farmers

and then some extra activities.

We did as well was to invite and

I think it's called ornithologist,

somebody that knows about birds.

And we build another mobile installation.

So also we didn't know that birds

existing in in the urban

rural areas are specific birds
that they are just reacting to the landscape.

That men builds in a way,
so it's not like nature.

And so we named those birds
when we make them a form

and then we transform,
like transform them in a mobile installation,

and we went into the landscape
to try to spot the birds.

Also, very interesting because of course,

we would not do this normally.

So we produced some food,
I brought some kimchi

and some beer,

and I think,

yeah, more or less that's it.

We are a group of people we are around eight

we want to continue this year,

we got some financial support

by 'LEADER' which I have to name of course,

which is not an artist

artistic fund, but it's an agricultural fund.

But if you think culture- agriculture,
then it all makes sense.

But somehow the fund thinks it's necessary
that artists

get buisy with transition and food

so that more people from the city are able

to see other possibilities in their lives.

And of course,
we would like to have a fixed spot

for the museum because slowly
we are collecting things.

And of course, we would like to have a farm,
but that's the big dreaming.

Maybe we, I don't know, unites

the eight of us and buy

a farm and make a school there
but we don't know yet.

We just work

with the flow.