Artist initiative Myvillages focuses on the countryside as a place for and of cultural production. In TENT, Myvillages presented itself for the first time to the Dutch public, with an exhibition, an event program and their International Village Shop.
Since 2003, Kathrin Böhm (DE/UK), Wapke Feenstra (NL) and Antje Schiffers (DE) have been working as the collective Myvillages on the village as a source of knowledge in contemporary art. The three artists themselves grew up in small farming villages, and from that position they want to stimulate the discussion around the countryside as an important place of cultural production with various projects.
The International Village Shop has previously set up shop on the Lüneburger Heide and in Tate Britain, where village products were tasted and sold. In Berlin, Myvillages worked for a year on Vorratskammer for the festival Über Lebenskunst, where a pantry was created with products from farmers, breweries and producers from the immediate area. In the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, the end result of preserved food, freshly harvested hydro lettuce, specially brewed drinks and meat were offered.
In the International Village Shop in TENT, visitors could buy village products from the European network of Myvillages, supplemented with food from farmers in the local area. Various films and videos showed life in the countryside and the origin of 'village food'.