Experience with Groeispurt: Emiel Ambroos - Dancing Dunes

Emiel Ambroos (1992, BE) is a visual artist who works as a bricoleur (as he puts it himself: “a sort of mad professor in the field of construction”). With an ironic tone, he explores a colorful gray area where the boundaries between the organic and the artificial—or between the body and the landscape—blur. His research is increasingly focused on outdoor spaces, and he draws inspiration from the natural environment, science fiction, campground life, and illegal rave culture.

Dreamlike sculptures and installations, in which freedom and experimentation take center stage, are created from mostly found (construction) materials. In collaboration with Pierre Estourgie (artist/sound designer), Emiel has created a revamped version of their work “Dancing Dunes.” Thanks to support from Groeispurt , they Groeispurt able to further develop the prototype into a strong, updated version. This allowed “Dancing Dunes” to evolve into an ongoing research project. We asked Emiel and Pierre how the project went and what Groeispurt has meant Groeispurt them.

What is the project about?

"Dancing Dunes" is an electro-acoustic installation created for outdoor spaces. The work visualizes clumps of dune grass dancing in the wind. The dancing movement is transformed into a meditative live composition that at times touches on electronic music genres such as techno, ambient, or acid. The work is nomadic in nature and can be presented in both an event setting and a guerrilla context.

"Dancing Dunes is about resilience and the search for connection. It’s about constantly seeking ways to cope with change, whether on a personal level or on a larger scale. I think we’re mainly looking for an attitude or mindset that allows us to embrace change and go with the flow, rather than trying to control the circumstances around us. At the same time, the work is about friendship, love, and imperfections—and that’s definitely something worth celebrating."

Throughout the process, the work continually tests the relationship between (public) space, the public, natural conditions, and Emiel and Pierre’s position as artists. Due to constantly changing weather conditions and environmental factors, they, as creators, must continually anticipate these circumstances. In this way, as artists, they attempt to resynchronize with their surroundings time and again through their work and findings.

The Process

The process was "incredibly cool and inspiring," but also "hectic":

"We were quite ambitious and were actually hoping for a second grant, which we didn’t receive. On top of that, there were a lot of technical challenges that we couldn’t fully anticipate in terms of both time and cost. As a result, we ended up going way over budget and also pushing ourselves beyond our limits to be able to take all the steps we had envisioned."
Looking back, Emiel and Pierre should have discussed a few things more thoroughly during their collaboration, such as a potential Plan B and openly discussing where each of their interests lay regarding the project’s success.
“It’s really great to share in each other’s enthusiasm; that generates a lot of energy, ideas, and possibilities that you wouldn’t easily come up with on your own. At the same time, that can sometimes create expectations, and it becomes difficult later on to scale back, for example, the scope of the project.”
Especially when collaborating with people from different backgrounds or disciplines, it’s hard to fully grasp what technical expertise is needed to get the project done, and how each other’s processes work in that context. The lessons they’ve learned from this collaboration and would like to share as tips:

- Give each other space
- Clearly communicate your boundaries
- Together, allow enough time for testing phases during the development of the work and involve each other as much as possible in that process

Groeispurt Article

De Groeispurt a huge help in taking the next steps—both with the project and in our collaboration with each other.

“It was precisely through our collaboration that we both quickly discovered new mediums, materials, and perspectives. We became more aware of our own rhythms and ways of communicating.”

In addition to their artistic development, both artists also highlight their professional growth. Thanks to this project, exhibition platforms and other funding opportunities became easier to identify. Furthermore, the opportunity to transform the prototype into a final work gave them a much more realistic perspective on this process.

About Groeispurt

Groeispurt is a Nijmegen grant program for young creators, artists, and performers. The program encourages new ideas and initiatives and gives young talent an extra boost, without unnecessary restrictions or obligations. It is a flexible and fast way to provide support, encouraging new developments and helping art and culture in Nijmegen continue to flourish.