Crafting Shelter: Hazel Ver Moesen on Carpentry, Nature, and Life after School

How did you develop an interest in working with wood, and how did your experience at KASK & Conservatorium shape your practice?

My time at the school was truly wonderful. It was like a micro-community, and it felt like I lived there and not at the apartment that I rented at the time. There were many of us, we shared a lot of moments, we created, we celebrated and connected. With the teachers as well, they were also part of the community – they gave helpful feedback, and you really felt you knew them. They encouraged us to create whatever we wanted, they helped us build our own paths, and I think this is what I really liked about it.

It was like a micro-community, and it felt like I lived there and not at the apartment that I rented

I am very interested in nature and landscape, and I think this evolved from being at KASK & Conservatorium’s Bijloke campus. It had a great big garden; there were even chickens out there. It felt really peaceful, and in a way, it inspired my work.

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What attracts you to the traditions of carpentry and everyday tools? 

I really like being able to see that something is used or made by a human being and not manufactured by a machine. Maybe some would consider this ‘too much’, but it’s kind of anti-capitalist that an object is imperfect, and I really like the imperfection of things or seeing that objects already have a life. I like the personal, hand-made touch of carpentry.

You mentioned nostalgia and architecture. How do memory and place merge for you?

I don’t think they are personal memories, but it's more like a collective memory of some materials that I use. For instance, here in Flanders, forged, blackened and ornamental metal may refer to things you see outside of a typical ‘60s building. Combining this material memory with carpentry gives me a feeling of nostalgia.

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Do you create things for your own everyday use? 

Sometimes I make things for everyday use, like a lamp or spoons for myself, but I’ve mostly made things for exhibitions. However, lately I’ve been feeling uncomfortable with making so many things and just placing them outside or sometimes selling them. So now I'm searching for a new way to make pieces that are more reconstructive. I'm currently knitting a blanket for myself. It's also work and I can show it at an exhibition, but it doesn't need to just sit there forever.

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How does the leap from being at school to navigating exhibitions as a working artist feel? Any surprises or challenges that you can share since your graduation?

It was a very tough year – your priority becomes making money and surviving in a way, and everything is like one big question mark when you first graduate. However, I started working shortly after, so after saving money, I quickly searched for an atelier. But it was very difficult at first because I was questioning who I am and what I was doing. While you’re doing your master’s, you’re working on what you’ve learnt every day, with the guidance of teachers, so when that’s done, you may begin to question your artistic practice. So yeah, a year later, I'm re-evaluating everything, but it’s getting better.

A year later, I'm re-evaluating everything, but it’s getting better

At times, I felt my first solo work was a bit boring, but that’s also its part of it, and there’s freedom in that. You need to embrace the boredom as well. Sometimes I think I didn't have enough time or maybe that the work isn't good enough and needs to change, and that's okay. It’s an adventure, and it’s freeing to go through it without the restrictions of a graduation date.

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What directions or next steps are you currently exploring with your art?

Some of the forms I created were inspired by nature, such as flowers and various types of plants. I used to work on a farm, and that experience was an inspiration for some of the works I make. But now I am moving to something more conceptual. Lately, I’ve been doing research on landscapes and the idea of refuges or enclaves in nature. In France, when you’re walking in the mountains, there are these very simple shelters – places where anyone can sleep. They’re communal and open to everyone. That kind of shelter is becoming a new point of interest in my work.

Lately, I’ve been doing research on landscapes and the idea of refuges or enclaves in nature

When I’m in the city, I miss that connection to nature. In urban spaces, I often feel surrounded by capitalism, and I’m asking: how can I bring some of that feeling of landscape or nature into the city? Almost like creating a small point of refuge within the city – something that offers a similar sense of natural connection and shelter.

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<div class="editorial-banner"> <div class=“editorial-credits”>@snoertjehazel<br><br>Different Class and KASK & Conservatorium are teaming up for a series of artist portraits, featuring a glimpse of their interesting alumni.<br>schoolofartsgent.be</div></div>