From January 1st to June 30th this year, Ina Hagen was the artist-in-residence at WIELS Contemporary Art Centre in Brussels. We had the pleasure of speaking with Ina about her time at WIELS and her residency experience. In this interview, she shares her thoughts on the journey, the impact of the residency on her work, and much more.
Residency at WIELS: A Focus on Artistic Process
One of the highlights of the residency at WIELS was their emphasis on the artistic process and the way it was allowed to evolve during the residency. They provide the time and space for you to be in the studio, allowing for deep, focused work. For me, this provided the opportunity to fully immerse myself in my research, with wonderful support from the institution and the framework of the residency.
Over our time there, all the participants developed a close connection. We had a lot of time to get to know each other and dive deeply into each other's practices. A studio visit would normally last for hours, and we would regularly have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together on our day with the mentors. WIELS provides plenty of room for the participating artists to communicate their needs, and they create an environment that encourages openness.
Once a week, a full day was dedicated to discussing our work, sharing our process, and seeking inspiration together with the other residents and a small number of recurring mentors. This forum was entirely open for us to shape however we wanted. The mentors would sometimes initiate specific discussions inspired by our work, or we would spend the day on a handful of studio visits. The residency at WEILS places great emphasis on peer-to-peer dialogue, which made it a very supportive environment for me.
These weekly mentor sessions were unique in the sense that they unfold over six months and enabled a nuanced and complex conversation that, for me, is still ongoing in some ways. The mentor sessions could be both challenging and deeply rewarding.
Engaging with the Local Art Scene
WIELS was excellent at bringing in other artists to the studios. We had regular studio visits with inspiring, established artists from the local scene. In my experience, these conversations tended to be quite process-oriented, which was valuable and allowed me to explore which elements are most generative in my own practices and insights into how I work best in the studio. The conversations were always very close to the work and the process.
The art scene in Brussels is very active, with a vibrant community. It was exciting to see several collective artist- and curator-driven projects and exhibition spaces. Another positive aspect of being in Brussels is its proximity to other places. It’s inspiring to be there, as it’s a crossroad for many artists traveling through Europe. You really feel part of a larger, transnational art community.
WIELS also organises a public event for the residents called "Open School," where the residents had the opportunity to present their practice to the public: open studios, performances, lectures, talks, or exhibited works, culminating in a social gathering in the WIELS café.
For this event, we opened our studios, focusing on sharing our process, showing sketches, works-in-progress, and research materials, and produced new works that were exhibited or performed elsewhere in the building.
I have the impression that the studios and the open school event attract quite a lot of attention each year. It is my experience that WIELS has a solid position in the art community, both locally in Belgium and internationally. Quite a few curators arrange their own visits, and WIELS facilitates meetings with them as well.
In retrospect: Opportunities for Artistic Growth and Confidence
During this residency I wanted to explore infrastructural connections between Norway and Belgium from the early 1900s until today, especially connected to extraction and energy infrastructures. For example, I have documented some archival material from a collaborative study published in 1960 between the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Brussels and the University of Oslo on fossilised plant matter from the Congo Basin.
But the most valuable aspect with this residency for me was the opportunity for introspection and critical conversation, as we became so well-acquainted, building a deep sense of trust. The residency has been very inspiring, providing me with many new ideas and a wealth of materials. This includes conversations and networks with collaborators who work in similar ways, and with whom I continue to engage.
Personally, the time at the residency gave me new level of confidence in my practice, and I learned to trust myself more in the studio. At WIELS, I felt free to honestly and openly explore my own practice. I was challenged and confronted with my own assumptions about my work—and that’s a good thing!
