Lessons learnt in 10 years of running De Ruimte

De Ruimte is a venue for experimental music and other performing arts located in Amsterdam-Noord. Starting off in the former living room of a centuries old dyke house on Buiksloterdijk, next to Noorderpark, we are currently located on the third floor of a building called de Verkeerstoren, on Distelweg 83. We welcome the finest of Amsterdam’s improvised music scene and many talented international improvising musicians on our stage, are one of the few regular spots in the city for electro-acoustic and experimental electronic music and throw some of the best live music dance parties in town. Occasionally we venture into the regions of classical and contemporary music, and more and more we are a space for performance art, modern dance and poetry. We aim to be a pla-ce where genres are bended and people from different artistic disciplines meet and work together.

In October we celebrate our ten year anniversary. Initiators Bart Verbunt and Robert van ‘t Veld are looking back on a decade with many thrills, hard work, stressful times, a lot of love and support from people in a number of artistic scenes, and mainly many moments of beauty. To help the new cultural organizers to avoid some pitfalls, they will share a few insights.

1. Amsterdam needs experimental art
Whether you call it alternative, underground, fringe, experimental, sub-culture or counter-culture, this city needs it. Yes, we also need the pop venues, the classical and contemporary music venues, the big theaters and dance and opera venues, but these are not the places where new ideas are being born and come to fruition, where art is changed in beautiful and unexpected ways and, thus, kept alive. This is not to say that every alternative place should only be a place for artists that want to do a try-out or are at the beginning of their careers, it’s a plea for art and artists aiming to cross the borders of genres, disciplines, conventions and expectations. This creates the fertile ground that many people flock to, even if they don’t realize it in the costly apartments and commercial dis-tricts that have been built on top of it.

2. Amsterdam is being made by the people that think: here is where it happens
Whether they were born here or come from afar, people that think this place is beautiful, this is where I will find what I need, are bound to end up making it happen. It’s a fantastic self-fulfilling pro-phecy that’s also a delicate balance, because circumstances need to be right. Although this is more of an observation, it is also an encouragement to put your trust into the weird, beautiful, curious and talented people that come to your place with a drive to do something, whether they are from afar or born around the corner.

3. Space is everything
Amsterdam is a city that is straining to keep her back straight under the pressure of a housing cri-sis and land prices that are continuously rising. Nothing new for the readers of this paper, but all reasons for stressing the importance not just of organizing events, but also of planting a flag in the city and finding ways to stick to it as long as possible, preferably permanently. We are convinced that all artistic scenes need homes to grow in and to blossom. Any space that’s yours, is a space that you can share with others, is a place where artists and audiences can feel at home. Where you can slowly build trust, and that people come to because they feel safe and welcome, because they know they will experience something meaningful, even though they don’t know the names on the lineup.

4. Share your space
There are few things we like more than giving an artist, programmer or volunteer that’s involved with De Ruimte the key of our building and tell them to do their thing. Not only do you create bonds with good and talented people, you also give them the opportunity to grow and to create, to set things in motion that you cannot fathom but that will breath life into the city.

5. You need stamina
It’s our biggest talent. Mistakes were made, but we persevered, and we saw De Ruimte slowly grow into something that could (almost) exist without us. Creating a space for experimental art doesn’t happen overnight, you have to be in it for the long run. But along the way you will meet people and experience performances that make it worthwhile.

6. Protect your independence but don’t be afraid of institutional forces
Dealing with civil servants or public funds is not always a bed of roses, but it is often necessary or beneficial, and you might find out that you are dealing with competent people that share many of your ideals and that are in a position to make things happen. We encourage you to keep an open mind and always assume that you and the other, more institutional party, are working towards the same goal.

7. We need public funding
For many years we protected our independence by avoiding public funding. At some point we reali-zed that, not only were we not paying ourselves for our work, also our programmers and artists we-re not being paid properly. We realized that we are not running AFAS Live and that money from the door alone would never be enough for the kind of performances that happen in De Ruimte. We also strongly believed that art is not a hobby and that it is worth something. Regardless of any ideas or ideals one might have about capitalism, artists currently still need to pay the rent, and it is a good thing to try to support them in their livelihood. Don’t let the above stop you from thinking about alter-native sources of income, but be aware that it is ok to ask society for money for the art that you’re intending to give to society.

8. Think about the people that come after you
Not only De Ruimte aged ten years, so did we. We believe that a place that is there to stay cannot depend on one or two people, it should be a living and growing part of this city and the scenes that it represents. In our view, this means that you need to make space for others to take the helm. Look for people that are like you but that are not like you, so they can bring something new and represent and involve new people. Give them freedom and responsibilities while you are still around. By being an enabler, you are also a gatekeeper, and this is something to keep in mind in the midst of day the chaos, the highs and the lows, and the mundane day to day affairs.

We will celebrate our tenth anniversary all throughout October, in our spot on Distelweg 83, in Sexy-land World, and at de Saunakaravaan. This will also be the start of our one year stay at Sexyland World, which is a prelude to a partnership in the next venue of Sexyland World. Here we will have our own spot within the larger collective. Together we will carve out a permanent space in the city for cultural experiment. Feel welcome to join the festivities! 

For more information: 
www.cafederuimte.nl