During the final weekend of Chapter 5IVE, we delve into the value of gardening. Maintaining a garden, or 'cultivating' a piece of land, has many metaphorical meanings. During this afternoon we invite various speakers to explore the impact of gardening on a personal, a social, an artistic and a philosophical level.

The speakers of this afternoon are:

Niek Overmars, gardener and board member of the Zaanse allotment garden Nut & Genoegen, close to Het HEM. Niek will tell us about the history of this complex that is more than a hundred years old and especially established for employees of the weapon factory based on the Hembrug-terrain. Remarkably Nut & Genoegen used to be called ‘Oorlog’ (‘war’ in dutch), because the land was owned by the War Department. Especially in the early days, the fruit and vegetables grown here were a much-needed addition to their daily food supply.

Nanny Peereboom, gardener and board member of allotment association Jan Vroegop in Zaandam, will share a personal story of a gardener for whom the garden has proved to be an important source of support and comfort during difficult times. What can a garden mean to you personally? Nanny will also bring some products from the garden and booklets about Jan Vroegop's 75th anniversary.

Debra Solomon is artist, initiator of Urbaniahoeve, and in her own words a 'reluctant activist'. Debra tells a passionate story about the universal right to food. Whereas food in our current society is seen as a profitable product, Debra believes that it should be a fundamental right for everyone and within the boundaries of our cities she sees plenty of opportunities to develop a fair and equal food system in which no one needs to fall short.

Angela Jerardi and students of the Gerrit Rietveld academy 'Garden Department' are convinced that through gardening they can radically change the educational system - art education in particular. What do we learn from the rhythm of nature and the care for our living environment, and how can we give these insights a place in learning and studying itself?

Claudy Jongstra is worldwide renowned for her designs made of wool and other organic materials. Her work is collected by the Rijksmuseum, Victoria & Albert Museum and the MoMA, to name just a few. Together with her partner Claudia Busson, she also manages several botanical (die-) gardens and works with farmers from their native Friesland and far beyond. Claudy and Claudia talk about the insights they have gained from their worldwide research.

During the afternoon products by local gardeners will be for sale, and our in house bakery Solinger will serve fresh bread and other baked goods. The programme is (mainly) in Dutch with live translations of English contributions to Dutch.