In Review: Creatief Met Leegstand Festival

Phew, what a weekend! Weeks of organising finally paid off, & our much-anticipated Creatief Met Leegstand Festival was a roaring success! First off, we’d like to extend a HUGE thank you to our two fantastic international Guest Speakers –
Dan Thompson (Empty Shops Network, UK) & Marcus Westbury (Renew Newcastle, AU).
We’d also like to thank our fellow organisers, Buurtflirt & Lotti Hesper Projectontwikkeling. And of course, our team of volunteers & very kind sponsors – we wouldn’t have been able to do it without you!

To those of you who made it to the Festival, thanks for all your positive feedback & for contributing to the fantastic atmosphere over the two days. We hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did!

We thought we’d share a quick run-down of the Creatief Met Leegstand Festival with you all…

Whilst organising the Creatief Met Leegstand Festival, we were fortunate enough to be approached by around 20 different artists to exhibit their work. The main festival venue doubled as a huge impromptu, temporary art gallery; showcasing some brilliant pieces by emerging local artists. Some of our personal favourites were Linda Seine’s large-scale fabric overlay illustrations; as well as some quirky paintings courtesy of Rotterdam studio The Witty Collective.

The Festival drew a great turnout, with over 200 people visiting the main venue over the two days!

Immediately after the Festival, we’ve already been approached by so many guests expressing how much inspiration & enthusiasm they drew from Creatief Met Leegstand; especially from Dan & Marcus.
Friday was the main programmed day, featuring Keynote talks & a series of different workshops – including one each from our Guest Speakers, as well as our own Leefstand workshop (Vacancy on a Shoestring).

Brilliant work by Rotterdam artist Linda Seine.

As we suspected, the Guerilla Swing Park we promised was a huge hit! Popping up in the very unexpected location of a disused, empty shop space on Nieuwe Binnenweg; the Swing Park instantly attracted passers-by. The Swing Park hardly needed a poster or sign to announce it – what better advertising than squeals of laughter & excitement from strangers swinging in an empty space?!

If you did miss the Creatief Met Leegstand Festival, you can keep up to date with more Leefstand happenings in & around Rotterdam by following our blog here, & joining our online community on Facebook & Twitter.
We’re always delighted to receive feedback & ideas, so keep them coming!
F: Leefstand Group
T: @charlottepaull / @alexdangerfalk