201

Arte Útil archive nr:

201

Initiator:

Kamiel Verschuren and Jaap Verheul A.O.

Location:

The

Users:

NAC members, artists and the inhabitants of Oud-Charlois district, Wolphaertstraat, the housing block ‘t O-tje at Verboomstraat and the neighborhood Wielewaal.

Maintained by:

NAC, district council of Charlois, Housing corporations, The Mya NAC culture fund.

Certification:

implemented

Duration:

2004 - ongoing

Kamiel Verschuren and Jaap Verheul A.O.
-
NAC Foundation (New Ateliers Charlois)

Description:

On 2004, NAC was founded as a non profit, self-management organization to continue with this idea of generating, managing and offering low-cost studio spaces needed to support an artistic practice, by promoting and organizing the participation of artists or other cultural producers in social and urban processes and in collaborations. These are spaces that are no longer available on the regular housing market and are offered to NAC by housing corporations. By taking the maintenance and by organizing, these spaces can be offered to the artist almost free of cost. This is done with the assumption that if the daily costs for the artists involved are low, more energy and commitment can be expected of the artists to engage in the development and execution of cultural activities. On the one hand the artists, by paying a users fee that is transformed into a collective fund, are collectively responsible for the general management of the individual studio spaces and the collective spaces. And on the other hand, the yearly financial reserves, the collective fund (MYA-NAC), can be addressed to financially support cultural activities (in relation with the district). «NAC in itself is nothing but a process» M. Specht


Goals:

«NAC works on the basis of trustful relationships and within the notion that freedom is generated through responsibility: “everything is possible and allowed as long as one can, and will take full responsibility for ones” actions. Our aim is to stimulate, initiate and produce cultural activity in Rotterdam and with a special attention for the district of Charlois.»NAC

Beneficial Outcomes:

Over 250 artists and architects have made use of the studios. NAC provides Dutch language courses for it members, cultural trips to exhibitions, public art works, and other artists’ initiatives, supports all applications under 500,- euro. NAC is now an example for new ways of urban development.

Images: