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De Waan
In Venray, the history of psychiatry extends back almost 100 years and De Waan, a manifestation of both
art and psychiatry, is very much a part of this. In a beautiful historic ambiance, formed by monumental
buildings of the former psychiatric hospital of St. Anna, 17 leading artists from home and abroad displayed
their works representing a century of psychiatric care. Through their works, the artists refer to questions
like "what is madness?", "who is mad?" and "when is one mad?"
In honour and recognition of psychiatry
Visitor wandering through the impressive buildings and grounds of De Waan were continually
confronted by elements drawn from the world of psychiatry. Honor and recognition of psychiatry is the
basis of the artists' works. De Waan also wishes to start a conscious awakening process to stimulate the
visitor into thinking again about "what is madness?" and how to treat psychiatric patients in the future. In
this way De Waan also hopes to contribute to a different concept of psychiatry and psychiatric patients.
100 years of psychiatry in Venray immortalized
De Waan artistically immortalized the tradition of almost 100 years of psychiatry in Venray. Over a
period of time, works were placed on nine roundabouts in honor and recognition of psychiatric care and
psychiatric patients within the community. These works are not only figuratively, but also literally show
the inside of the psychiatric hospital, which now bears the name The Vincent van Gogh Institute. Parts of
buildings and other objects rescued from scrap have been transformed into monuments. One of the
roundabouts was laid out as a churchyard, in remembrance and out of respect for the psychiatric
patients who died whilst staying in Venray.
The ideas for the roundabouts came from the 17 participating artists at De Waan, who in this way provide
a tangible and permanent reminder to commemorate psychiatry and psychiatric patients.
Activities in the region
Besides the international exhibition in Venray, there were many contributions from the region for
this manifestation. Amateurs and professionals from North-Limburg were invited and challenged to give
form to their perception of dealing with psychiatry through music, dance, theatre, art, literature, film,
poetry, archaeology and photography. This has resulted in a great number of exceptional activities,
recitals, expositions, performances and guided tours.
There were also various exhibitions with the theme psychiatry in museums in the north of Limburg such
as the Museum Van Bommel Van Dam, the Limburg Museum, and poetry in Steyl.
During this exhibition, works also were displayed by artists with a psychiatric background.
Odapark
De Waan has been organized by the Odapark Foundation in Venray, which is a center for present-day art, music,
theatre and literature. In the center of the park is the Teahouse, where exhibitions are organized to
display the works of international artists. Concerts, theatre performances and readings are also regularly
given. Around the Teahouse is the Beeldenpark, in which over 60 works from international present-day
artists are on permanent display. Odapark also had an exhibition, within the framework of De Waan,
displaying the work of Willem van Genk, a schizophrenic.
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