MEREL SMITT is an interdisciplinary artist based in Rotterdam and works as a director, intervention-maker, organizer and researcher. Her live-art projects take place at the intersection of performative interventions, socially engaged art and cultural activism. Her work is developed site-specific in public spaces, in collaborations with different communities, activists, academics, philosophers, peers and experts. Her artistic projects are carried out through active participation of different groups of audience and can be seen as methodologies to reclaim spaces, disrupt systems and build platforms in which exchange, gathering, solidarity and support is possible. In this way, participants gain the opportunity to experience themselves, others and the world in a new and different way.
Merel shares her artistic tools with whomever can benefit from it inside and outside the artistic field. Her artistic practice has been supported by several platforms in the European contemporary art scene such as SICK! Festival (UK), Metropolis Københvn (DK), Oerol (NL), Lokomotiva (NMK) Over Het IJ Festival (NL), Productiehuis Theater Rotterdam (NL), Giungla Festival (IT), STORMOPKOMST (BE), IN-SITU European Network, ACT (Art Climate Change) and other venues and institutions in The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Bucharest, New York, France, Belgium and Italy.
The Waiting City
The Waiting City was created during a Rotterdam Library residency. Through a series of workshops, participants shared personal waiting stories that shaped a city map highlighting diverse waiting spots in Rotterdam like the metro, hospice, and private homes. Using the map, participants explored the city independently over two weeks, accessing immersive audio and prompts via hidden QR codes. It concluded with a group gathering.
Van Kade Tot Zelfkant
In het community kunstproject Van Kade Tot Zelfkant werd er samen met 150 deelnemers op traditionele wijze Leids Saai gemaakt, een stof die de stad in de 17e eeuw grote rijkdom bracht. Merel maakte een installatie waarbij bezoekers tijdens hun deelname aan productieproces konden worden gecontroleerd op zowel de kwaliteit van hun werk als de kennis en kunde over het proces. Merel baseerde de ervaring op het traditionele controleproces van het Leids Saai en op meer hedendaagse controleprocessen.