Bik Van der Pol’s Between a Rock and a Hard Place (The Secret Ingredient – 26/11/14)

The Secret Ingredient

Liesbeth Bik and Jos van der Pol of the Rotterdam-based artist collective Bik Van der Pol discuss their approach to art making in relation to the social geography of Sudbury, Ontario. In preparation for their event-based art project Between a Rock and a Hard Place—11 outdoor concerts in 11 different locations—the pair engaged their senses to take in all the elements around them with the intention ‘not to work with a site specifically, but to make a site specific.’ Imagine the artists on hand and knee, washing the rocks stained by nickel smelting, peering deep into the trembling meteor vibrations that created Sudbury’s unique geological endowment, with all of its economic, environmental, and social consequences. Bik Van der Pol connected the rocks and the environmental situation of the city to the city’s burgeoning vibrant music scene. How do you acknowledge the connections between the land itself and the creative energies alive there? “Art is a focus point, or point of departure. It’s something that brings hopes and expectations to a focus point for imagination, and then spits it out back into the world again. It generates a different view on what you think is reality. As an artist you try to do something according to your own experience, finding a solution, a moment to see things differently, to have some sort of impact. It’s both for yourself and for others.” - Bik Van der Pol