Kunsthuis SYB

About SYB

Keunsthûs SYB is yn 2000 ûntstien út de neilittenskip fan Sybren Hellinga in Beetstersweach mei it doel om gâns ûnthjittende keunstners yn kontakt te bringen mei publyk en de omkriten. It rike kultuerlânskip en Fryslâns ûnderbeljochte skiednissen binne dan ek faak de ynspiraasjeboarnen foar projekten dy’t mei de bewenners ûntwikkele wurde. 

As described above in Frisian, Kunsthuis SYB was founded in Beetsterzwaag in 2000 in the estate of Sybren Hellinga with the aim of connecting promising artists with the local public and environment. Friesland’s rich cultural landscape and underexposed history are often the inspiration for projects that are developed.

Today, Kunsthuis SYB is an art space organizing workshops, public presentations, research residencies, exhibitions, a biennial art prize and a triennial, in which local, national and international artists and professionals participate. Its unique location in a village in a bilingual rural region, provides a place for alternative reflection for participants and opportunities for talent development. SYB fosters a unique and fertile environment for contemporary art within the international discourse, while being closely connected to a local non-art audience and to (inter)regional and national professional cultural followers. Within this context, SYB is able to expand and further enrich the dialogue on diversity from and within a rural perspective.

In the 24 years of SYB’s existence, an extensive network of around 300 interdisciplinary artists has been established, including Rory Pilgrim (Prix de Rome); Mounira Al Solh (Lebanese Pavilion, Venice Biennale 2024); Yael Bartana (German Pavilion 2024, Venice Biennale), Melanie Bonajo (Dutch Pavilion, Venice Biennale 2022) and many others. In the past two years, an education programme has been launched that brings children from local schools into contact with contemporary artists.

SYB communicates in Dutch, Frisian and English.

Kunsthuis SYB is centrally located in a monumental building on the main street of the village of Beetsterzwaag. The ground floor is, as it were, the public interface of the organisation and houses artistic presentations such as exhibitions, performances, lectures and workshops. The first and second floors consist of a kitchen – office space and, above it, a living quarter for artists conducting research through residencies and installation periods. This homely atmosphere remains present in the working methodology.

Kunsthuis SYB is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 13:00 to 17:00.

 

 

Organization

Syb is a nonprofit foundation overseen by a board that serves two four-year terms. There is a vacancy for treasurer. The current board consists of:

• Irene Kromhout, chair – Project leader exhibitions Fries Museum & Ceramics Museum Princessehof
• Dorine Schreurs, secretary – Head of development strategy & partnerships Arcadia
• Petra Heck, board member – Curator NDSM Wharf Foundation

In 2022 – 2023 SYB has taken further steps towards professionalization by reflecting and implementing the codes for Governance Code Cultuur, Code Diversiteit en Inclusie en Fair Practice Code, handling artist’s fees and fair pay according to the guidelines of De Zaak Nu. One of the challenges is institutional memory and continuity due to the temporary and biennial funding structures, while the Province of Friesland provides a modest four-year structural contribution. SYB is proud that since the beginning it has managed to present a continuous program even in times of crisis, budget cuts and the covid pandemic.

Currently, the organization consists of freelance professionals and a crucial group of volunteers. In the past, SYB also worked on a volunteer basis with writers and young practitioners within a talent development program (Circles, Writers Program). After reflecting in light of the Fair Practice Codes, Syb converted those talent development trajectories into actual writing assignments and a writer’s residency within the artistic program in 2023.

Staff in 2024
Arnisa Zeqo – general director and curator – since July 2022. Arnisa Zeqo has a background in art history and philosophy. She previously worked as a curator, writer and lecturer for both national (Rongwrong, Netherlands Art Institute) and international organizations (Documenta 14, CCS Bard, National Gallery Tirana). At SYB, she oversees the artistic program, manages financial and policy aspects, reports to the board and maintains relationships with artists, stakeholders and institutional partners. She lives partly in Amsterdam and partly in Beetsterzwaag.

Gisanne Hendriks – coordinator – since May 2021. Gisanne Hendriks works as coordinator at SYB since 2021, after studies at the University of Groningen and Academy Minerva in Groningen. Besides her work at Kunsthuis SYB, she has experience with Frisian cultural institutions as a fundraiser and project coordinator. The coordinator supports the director in a general sense, has close contact with the volunteers and is engaged in talent guidance and administration. She is also co-responsible for the activation of the alumni network. Gisanne lives in Leeuwarden.

Vanina Tsvetkova – technical and production specialist – on temporary basis since September 2022. Vanina Tsvetkova studied at Academy Minerva (2014) and the Frank Mohr Institute (2020), in Groningen. Vanina specializes in technical and production expertise and since the Sybren Hellinga Art Prize in 2022, she and SYB have been working together. She lives in Groningen.

Maarten van Maanen – designer – since 2015. Maarten van Maanen has been involved with Kunsthuis SYB as a designer since 2015, working, among other things, on design for publications and advertisements. Maarten is leaving SYB in mid-2024 and we are looking for a new designer.

House club volunteers
The presence of volunteers is crucial to the continuation, function and harmony of SYB. The House Club volunteers all live in the village, often close to SYB.

Jan Harmsma, formerly employed as a councilor with the Municipality of Opsterland, has been working at SYB since 2006. He manages the maintenance the building and welcomes the artists by introducing them to local stories and traditions. Jan is instrumental in working with SYB alumni.

Ed Knotter has been translating texts for SYB’s artistic projects and presentations since 2015. He often engages in dialogue with artists and writers about Frisian language and history.

Eva Kruis provides hospitality around openings and lectures of SYB since 2021. She also assists with presentations in the exhibition space to welcome visitors.

Gepke Veenstra helps Eva in hospitality and welcomes visitors during exhibitions.

 

 

Objectives and reflection

The main objectives for the coming years are audience building and further accessibility through a regular and sustainable artistic presentation program within a rural context. SYB has internally evaluated the program and its methods over the past two years. Based on this, some conclusions support the development of a tightened program structure.

The greatest qualitative aspect of the existing residencies and presentations is the local embeddedness, the authentic relationships that develop between artists, the people and initiatives in the area. An additional qualitative aspect is the experience of art from a rural perspective and the “space to think artistically”. The value of interactive or dialogic final presentations is perceived as very important by artists, audiences and organization alike.

The past two years have been crucial for the consolidation and artistic and organizational transformations of SYB. 2022 began with the parting of previous director Josine Sibum Siderius and the interim directorship of Nathalie Hartjes. During her tenure, Sibum Siderius consolidated the organization financially and initiated new relationships within Friesland. Hartjes brought new fundraising strategies, worked on the Mondriaan application (23/24) and put the stamp on the artistic program for 2023- 2024. In July 2022, Zeqo, began overseeing and implementing the existing program (through September 2024) while re-evaluating and creating future policies and artistic vision. An insight in forming this new artistic vision was the need to create recurring and sustainable interaction and visibility with the public through a regular exhibition program. This policy is a result of several factors: Zeqo’s artistic framework, internal dialogue within the organization, SYB’s artistic heritage and conversations with stakeholders, alumni, current artists, residents and visitors.

In addition, SYB participated in the Mondrian Mentorship program, which focused particularly on organizational professionalization and institutional relationship management. During the Mentorship program, Arnisa Zeqo expanded also some funding strategies building on Hartjes’ work and secured new institutional collaborations such as with Arcadia and Fries Museum.

In 2023, Zeqo successfully applied for a special arrangement from the Province of Friesland to create a more thorough artistic program that includes curatorial research and the creation of a regular exhibition program (2024-25). In 2023, SYB began discussions with new private foundations to create a sustainable financial base.

 

 

Positioning Kunsthuis SYB within the art climate in Friesland and the Northern Netherlands

SYB is unique in the Netherlands and in Friesland because it operates from a rural area in a bilingual region with a rich cultural history and its own communities. Friesland is a place where many current social issues converge: from housing transformations and cultural diversity to environmental issues. The province is struggling with shrinking communities and demographics, but is also attracting new residents. On the one hand, Friesland is blessed with the legacy of its own language and customs in addition to Dutch, and on the other hand, it lacks the resources to safeguard that own diversity both in the region and on a national scale. The Fryske Akademy in Leeuwarden aims to protect the language and offers language courses, while no university in the north offers a full course in Frisian.

Friesland has a fragile cultural infrastructure. Contemporary art is hardly represented, especially outside Leeuwarden. Kunsthuis SYB is an indispensable link within this scarcity. The national cultural policy 2025-2028 formulates that geographical distribution is important and as former state secretary Uslu writes, “I share the view that local roots and connection are important.” We welcome these words and emphasize that SYB is the only place in rural Friesland with national reach specifically dedicated to the development and presentation of contemporary art.

Over the years, SYB has regularly entered into dialogues, artistic collaborations, and talent development programs with other northern institutions, primarily in Leeuwarden and Groningen. These include collaborations with the Fries Museum, VHDG (Leeuwarden), Het Resort (Groningen), and Academy Minerva (Groningen). Since 2018, when Leeuwarden-Friesland became European Capital of Culture, the legacy organization Arcadia has been a crucial player in the area. The contemporary art exhibition Paradys, attracted some 24,000 visitors in 2022. SYB collaborated with Arcadia in 2022 in the form of a podcast series.

SYB is an active member of De Zaak Nu and is proud to have initiated the Noordaars in 2015, encouraged by De Zaak Nu. The network consists of 16 presentation institutions in Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. In the local context, SYB collaborates with the Tropical Greenhouse, which has been located in the village of Beetsterzwaag since the late 19th century. In the past year, SYB has also established contact with Streekmuseum Opsterland in Gorredijk and Museum Dr8888 in Drachten.

In 2022-2024, SYB further strengthens existing dialogues through structural and deepening cooperation.