Provincial Domain Dommelhof is an institution of the province Limburg (Belgium) in Belgium for culture, performing arts, and sports. Dommelhof was opened in 1967 in the municipality

Neerpelt Neerpelt (, literally ''Lower Pelt'') is a town in Pelt and a former municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. In 2018, the municipality had a total population of 17,174. The total area is 42.78 km². Effective 1 January 201 ...

. The institution was the first cultural center in Flanders.

History

In 1962, the Provincial Council of Belgian Limburg decided to set up Dommelhof. Second

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organizatio ...

Frans Van Mechelen decided to subsidize the construction of the cultural infrastructure. This infrastructure, designed by Alfons Hoppenbrouwers, included a theater, education and residence building. In 1967 the first show of the theater was a fact. Until the 1980s, content was mainly devoted to social-cultural education and experimental programming in the theater. In 1979 the site was expanded with a sports center. In the 1980s an international doll festival was launched and a summer festival for open air theater was launched. The puppet festival has disappeared and the festival for open air theater expanded in the following years to the international festival for outdoor, venue and circus theater on the Market. The platform for arthousecinema in Limburg, Zebracinema, also originated in Dommelhof. The Klankenbos (Sound forest) of Provinciaal Domein Dommelhof is the biggest

sound art Sound art is an artistic activity in which sound is utilized as a primary medium or material. Like many genres of contemporary art, sound art may be interdisciplinary in nature, or be used in hybrid forms. According to Brandon LaBelle, sound art ...

collection in a public space in Europe. In the forest there are 15

sound installation Sound art is an artistic activity in which sound is utilized as a primary medium or material. Like many genres of contemporary art, sound art may be interdisciplinary in nature, or be used in hybrid forms. According to Brandon LaBelle, sound art ...

pieces by artists such as Pierre Berthet,

Paul Panhuysen Paul Panhuysen (21 August 1934 – 29 January 2015) was a Dutch composer, visual and sound artist. He founded and directed Het Apollohuis, an art space that functioned during the 80's and 90's having artists doing sound installations, sound scul ...

, Geert Jan Hobbijn (

Staalplaat Staalplaat is an independent record label that is located in Amsterdam with a separate store in Berlin. Founded in 1982, the company's mission was to create a sound forum for sound artists, who write and perform new and experimental music. Staalpl ...

Soundsystem), Hans van Koolwijk, and others.

Operation

The current activities of Dommelhof include: * Theater op de Markt: Distribution and creation of circus and open-air theater through a summer festival and autumn festival, and a production cell for (inter)national creation assignments and residences * TAKT: support talent in performing arts * Sports center: facilitating regional sports activities * Residence building: facilitating multi-day training for the socio-cultural field

Partners

Dommelhof works structurally with regional and Flemish cultural partners: * Musica: Impulse Center for music, and manager of het Klankenbos (the sound forest) on the Dommelhof site * Zebracinema: arthouse cinema in Belgian LimburgArticle about Zebracinema
in De Standaard * Circus Center: Flemish anchor point for circus art * Jazzcase: Northern limburg jazz platform

References

External links

Official website
Arts in Belgium Belgian culture Cultural organisations based in Belgium Arts organisations based in Belgium Flemish culture Arts in Flanders