Curriculum Vitae

Public appearances by Moniek Toebosch

2012

Sounds from the Basement The Present Is the Result of the Past; solo show; Locus Solus, Antwerpen (BE).
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To Be Present; cultural event with with 73 female artists, scientists, writers, musicians, dancers; De Balie, Amsterdam (NL); 8 March 2012.
Toebosch presented:

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2011

Impossible Community; group show curated by Viktor Misiano; Moscow Museum of Modern Art (RU); Participants: Escape Program, Jens Haaring, Jeanne van Heeswijk, Sushan Kinoshita, Johanna Billing, Roman Ondak, Tanz Laboratorium, Vadim Fishkin.
Toebosch presented:

Wie ik was, voordat ik was (Who I Was, Before I Was); documentary on Moniek Toebosch by Babeth Vanloo; 60 min; broadcasted on Dutch National TV by Boeddhistische Omroep Stichting; 27 November 2011.
Further → information.

Erasing and Recovering on a Saturday Afternoon; performance; Lustwarande ’11 International Sculpture Show by Fundament Foundation, Tilburg (NL); 25 June 2011.
Further information → source 1 and source 2.

The Dutch Identity?; group show; Museum De Paviljoens, Almere (NL); Participants: Alicia Framis, Gabriel Lester, Jennifer Tee.
Toebosch presented:

Further information → source 1 and source 2.

2010

Mother – In Words, in Images, in Tears, in Verse, as Short Story, Song and Performance by Writers, Artists and Musicians; group show curated by Chantal Breakers; Stichting Outline, Amsterdam (NL); 10 October 2010; Participants: Maria Barnas, F. Starik, Manon Uphoff, PJ Roggeband.
Toebosch presented:

Further information → source 1 and source 2.

2009

Als zodanig niet herkenbaar, is dat duidelijk? (Not Recognizable as Such, Is That Clear?); solo show; Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam (NL).

Als zodanig niet herkenbaar, is dat duidelijk? (Not Recognizable as Such, Is That Clear?); collected writings (Dutch, partly English); with pictures and works by many others; design by Hansje van Halem; published by De Buitenkant, Amsterdam (NL); ISBN 978-90-76452-78.

Arti Medaille (Arti Medal); award contemporary art; Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam (NL); 29 May 2009.

All That Is Solid Melts into Air; group show; Stadsvisioenen (City Visons) by MuHKA and MM, Mechelen (BE); Participants: Marcel Broodthaers, Thierry De Cordier, Raoul De Keyser, Jimmie Durham, Isa Genzken, Valentine Kempynck, Suchan Kinoshita, Christophe Terlinden, Joelle Tuerlinckx.
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

2008

Tutor PhDArts; until 2012; Leiden University / KABK, The Hague (NL).

2007

Waiting for Buses and Birds; artwork in public space; in collaboration with Ulrike Brandi (light), Erik Beemster (projection), Wouter Snoei & Raven Bros (sound); Bus Station, Amsterdam Central Station (NL); until 2014.

Nieuwe Grond: The Artist as Opinion Leader; conference by Vrede van Utrecht (NL); Landgoed De Horst, Driebergen (NL); 27 September 2007.
Founding and opening speech at , organized by Vrede van Utrecht.
Toebosch presented:

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2006

Onderweg, Tussendoor (On the Way, Meanwhile); speech; Walter Maashuis, Bilthoven (NL); 9 June 2006.
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2004

Director DasArts; until 2007; Amsterdam (NL).

Chicken; video work; tribute to Joseph Beuys’s Coyote.

Dancing Tree; video work; CODA Cultural Center, Apeldoorn (NL).

2003

Ceia Brasil; performance workshop with Marco Paulo Rolla and Marco Hill; Belo Horizonte (BR).
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Pigeonneau en Bécasse; performance; in collaboration with Mayke Nas (composition), Moniek Toebosch (vocals); Korzo Theater, The Hague (NL); 14 June 2003.

Jury member Prix de Rome Sculpture; Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam (NL).

A Slight Revenge; performance workshop; Theatre School, Maastricht (NL).

2002

Propaganda; cultural discussion program; broadcasted on Dutch National TV by VPRO; 15 December 2002.

Underground Theory; conference; Interart Foundation, Arnhem (NL); 19 September 2002.
Toebosch presented:

Ceci n’est pas une architecture; group show; Museum De Paviljoens, Almere (NL); Participants: Lucas Verwey, Daniel Libeskind, Rudy Luijters, Krijn de Koning, Marinus Boezem.

www.idealepartij.nl; founding of a political internet party; Festival aan de Werf, Utrecht (NL).
Further → information.

Vraagmuur (Asking Wall); artwork in public space; Central Public Library, De Nieuwe Veste, Breda (NL); 27 February 2002.
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Radiolab; workshop and lecture; Walter Maas Huis, Bilthoven (NL); 23 January 2002.

2001

Silhouettes ‘n’ Shadows; group show; Fundament Foundation, Wilhelminakwartier Tilburg (NL); Participants: Tom America, Mo Becha, Dirk Braeckman, Dany Deprez, Alicia Framis, Job Koelewijn, Jacques Palinckx, Barbara Visser.
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

Kunst als Cultuurkritiek (Art as Cultural Criticism); group show; Volkenkundig Museum, Leiden (NL); Participants: Ken Lum, Roy Villevoye, Jens Haaning, Meshac Gaba.
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

Confidential; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 25 min; improvisations of violoncello, viola voice and tape, condensed in a flow of images, with faces of women; Cast: Lodewijk de Boer, Marylou Oschi, Mike Paschengger, Trix Zwartjes.

Confidential; compact disc; music improvisation by Frans Zwartjes (keyboard), Frances Marie Uitti (violoncello), Lodewijk de Boer (viola), Moniek Toebosch (vocals).

2000

Oeuvreprijs (Oeuvre Award); Fonds Beeldende Kunst Vormgeving en Bouwkunst, Amsterdam (NL); 14 December 2000.

Moniek Toebosch Archief 1948 – 2000 (Moniek Toebosch Archive 1948 – 2000); cd-rom; co-editing by Rudy Luijters, Mayke Nas, Annelys de Vet.
Browse the → archive.

Board member SKOR – Stichting Kunst en Openbare Ruimte (Foundation Art and Public Space); until 2004; Amsterdam (NL).

Oeuvre; solo show; Marres, Maastricht (NL).
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

1999

De Goddelijke Komedie (The Divine Comedy); group show; Kunstfort Asperen, Acquoy (NL); Participants: Danny Devos, Janet Cardiff & George Bures Miller.
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

Acoustic Architecture – Architectural Acoustics; group show; Foundation Vedute, Rotterdam (NL); Participants: Erik Blits, Bernard Delange, Cilia Ehrens, Jan Hoogstad, Hans Muller, Paul Panhuysen, Lee Ranaldo, Matthijs Vos, Jean van Wijk.
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

1998

Voices; travelling group show; Witte de With, Rotterdam (NL), Le Fresnoy, Tourcoing (FR) and Fundació Joan Miró (ES); Participants: Vito Acconci, Judith Barry, Geneviève Cadieux, Jochen Gerz, Gary Hill, Pierrre Huyghe, Kirstin Oppenheim, Christopher Phillips.
Toebosch presented:

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Mentor DasArts; Block 8 in collaboration with Dirk Pauwels Amsterdam; Amsterdam (NL).

1997

Tutor AKI 2; until 1998; AKI – Academy for Art and Industry, Enschede (NL).

Thomas Demand / Thomas Rentmeister / Moniek Toebosch; group show; Museum of Contemporary Arts, Vassivière (FR).
Toebosch presented:

Details; duet with Martin van Vreden; Gallery Brigitte Schenk, Cologne (DE).

De Verborgen Stad (The Hidden City); group show curated by Jeanne van Heeswijk, Lex ter Braak and Maria-Rosa Boezem; De Vleeshal, Middelburg (NL); Participants: Birthe Leemeijer, Roza El-Hassan, Marinus Boezem, Tracy Mackenna.
Further → information.

Nieuwe Aanwinsten (New Acquisitions); group show; Noord-Brabants Museum, Den Bosch (NL).
Toebosch presented:

1996

Tutor Rijksakademie; until 2000; Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam (NL).

Zomer in Almere; (Summer in Almere); group show; Museum De Paviljoens, Almere (NL).
Toebosch presented:

Further → information.

Board member Dutch Council of Culture; until 1999; The Hague (NL).

1995

Sandberg Prize for Visual Arts; Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst, Amsterdam (NL).

Les Douleurs Contemporaines II; installation; Museum De Pont, Tilburg (NL).

1994

Kop op Kop; alternating installation with 45 portrait paintings from Stedelijk Museum collection with texts by Moniek Toebosch; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (NL).

Kop op Kop; booklet with 100 instant self-portraits; 1979 – 1994.

Zomeraanbieding (Special Summer Offer); installation; De Vleeshal, Middelburg (NL).

Engelenzender (Angels FM 98.0); artwork in public space; Angel Broadcast Station active until 2000; Houtribdijk, Flevoland (NL).

A Painting Show; Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem (BE).

Francesca de la Dalle; video work; meatcow-concert.

Partly Unplugged; concert by Michel Waisvisz & Moniek Toebosch; with Marie Goyette, John Cameron, Henri James; on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of STEIM (Studio for Electro-Instrumental Music); De Balie, Amsterdam (NL)

1993

Abri – Seven Concepts for a Shelter; group show; Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven (NL); Participants: Hooykaas / Stansfield, Marinus Boezem, Thom Puckey, Jan van den Dobbelsteen.
Further → information.

1992

Keuzemomenten bij Dubbeltalenten (Moments of Choice of Double Talented Artists); group show; Museum Catharina Gasthuis, Gouda (NL).

Beyond; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 25 min; in honour of Samuel Beckett; Cast: Tom Jansen, Chris Manders.

Beyond; music improvisation; Frans Zwartjes (keyboard), Moniek Toebosch (vocals).

1991

About Truus Bronkhorst, Dancer; music improvisations by Frans Zwartjes (keyboards), Moniek Toebosch (vocals); film by Frans Zwartjes; broadcasted on Dutch National TV by VPRO in 1992.

Stof en Geest (Matter and Spirit); group show; Gymnasium Felisenum, Velzen-Noord (NL); Participants: Peter Struycken, Peter Giele, Tom Puckey, Rob Birza.

Direction of four fashion shows; Academie voor Beeldende Kunst en Vormgeving, Fashion Design department, Arnhem (NL).

1990

Frans Zwartjes Oeuvre; publication design; on occasion of the Ouborg Prijs (Ouborg Prize) to Frans Zwartjes; The Hague (NL).

1989

Beyond Performance; group show; Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam (NL).

Table à Changer; group show; Foundation Ars Uzu by Koos Flinterman, Lidewij Edelkoort, Paris (FR).

1988

Tempi en Intensiteiten (Tempi and Intensities); video installation; 20 min; So und So und So Soundfestival, Cristofori Concertzaal, Amsterdam (NL).

1987

Paul Chrevolet en de Ultieme Hallucinatie (Paul Chrevolet and the Ultimate Hallucination); acting; film by Pim de la Parra; 108 min; blocked writer looks for adventure, walking through Amsterdam; Cast: Peter Faber, Jenny Arean, Liz Snoyink, Ellen Vogel, Cas Enklaar, Frances Sanders, Lizette Oosthoek, Suzanne Wouters, Eddie Constantine.

1986

Ménage a trios; performance; live-satellite project by Douglas Davies; Pre-recorded and live images broadcasted on Dutch National TV by VPRO from Mickery Theater, Amsterdam (NL) in collaboration with Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (NL), Guggenheim Museum, New York (US) and Venice Biennale (IT).

1985

De Afstand tot Waanzinn (Distance to Madness); performance; Beursschouwburg, Brussels (BE).

Toteninsel, oder Lazy Lady oder...; performance; Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (DE).

Dutch Difficult Music; compilation LP; Participants: Peter Zegveld, Ninetobs, Noodband, Remco Scha & the Machines, Michel Waisvisz.
Toebosch contributed:

Trio Musical Wallpaper; concert with Guus Jansen and Annemarie Roelofs; Kijkhuis, The Hague (NL).

Tutor at the department VAV – Voorheen Audio Visueel (Audiovisual department); until 1990; Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam (NL).

1984

Prego, il Mio Scritto; sound piece in collaboration with Michel Waisvisz; STEIM, Amsterdam (NL) and Instituto Olandese, Rome (IT).

In Concert with The Alterations; concert; Claxon Sound Festival, Theater ’t Hoogt, Utrecht (NL).

Recital Moniek Toebosch; in collaboration with Guus Janssen (piano) and the Art Brothers; Stadsschouwburg, Maastricht (NL).

Kleur bestaat niet, maar geeft af (Colour Does Not Exist, but Rubs Off); solo show; De Beyerd, Breda (NL).

Bitte, Mein Schrei; composition of 5 radio programmes in collaboration with Openbaar Kunstbezit, live broadcasted with young artists and art students on Dutch National Radio; Participants: Hetty Huisman, Uwe Laysiepen, Marina Abramovic, Lothar Baumgarten, Lawrence Weiner, Remy Zaugg, Harry de Kroon, Marinus Boezem, Karel Appel (Musique Barbare), Peter Struycken.

De Appel 3'84"; compilation tape with 17 artists invited by De Appel, Amsterdam (NL); Participants: Peter Gordon, Terry Fox, Peter Zegveld, Remko Scha, Relly Tarlo, Katrien Gottlieb.

1983

Is This the End?; live performance in collaboration with Michel Waisvisz; Carré Theatre, Amsterdam (NL); broadcasted on Dutch National TV by VPRO; 15 June 1983.

Nit Hit; vinyl 7 inch; Baby in Your Arms (A-side), Is This the End? (B-side); Music label: Claxon H83.

Painthouse; installation; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (NL).

Gesignaleerd. Neue Kunst aus den Niederlanden; travelling group show; Kunsthalle zu Kiel (DE) and Schleswig-Holsteinischer Kunstverein (DE).
Toebosch presented:

Concert with The Alterations; with Steve Beresford, David Toop, Terry Day, Peter Cusack, Toshinori Kondo; Actual Festival 83, ICA, London (GB).

Aanvallen van Uitersten; (Attacks of Extremes); concept, concerts and performances; four live emissions broadcasted on Dutch National TV by VPRO in collaboration with Holland Festival and VPRO Television; 1, 8, 15 and 22 June 1983; Curators: Frans de Ruiter (Director Holland Festival), Ad ’s-Gravenzande (VPRO), Theo Uittenbogaard (TV Director VPRO) and Moniek Toebosch, who introduced all participants, performers, musicians, dancers, orchestras, poets and collaborated with several guests in musical actions and performed solo.

1982

De Smaak van Water (The Taste of Water); acting; film by Orlow Seunke; 100 min; about the life of a cynical civil servant that changes after he met a little girl neglected by her mentally disturbed parents; Cast: Gerard Thoolen, Joop Admiraal, Olga Zuiderhoek, Elsje Scherjon, Bram van der Vlugt, Peer Mascini; a.o. Golden Lion best debut at Venice Film Festival.
Further → information.

1981

Bitte, mein Schrei; video- and sound installation; Claxon Sound Festival, ’t Hoogt Utrecht (NL).

Painthouse; composition for voice, paint and canvas; Tape 1 – Live recorded on Dutch National TV by VPRO; De Noodzaak van de Kunst, Holland Festival, Carré Theatre, Amsterdam (NL); Tape 2 – Recorded at the Centre for Modern Art, De Beyerd, Breda (NL).

Verzamelde beelden en toevallen / Af- en Toespraken (Collected Images and Coincidents / Dates and Talks); video work, 30 min; in collaboration with Montevideo, Amsterdam (NL).

Bitte, mein Schrei (Frei nach Munch); installation.

I Can Dance; vinyl LP; Music label: Claxon; no: 81-1; Sound-engineering: Dick Lucas and Michel Waisvis.

In Extremo; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 75 min; satire on artworld and body art performance; Cast: Lisa de Rooy, Tom Jansen, Helen Hedy, Armand Perrenet, Trix Zwartjes, Huub Hansen.

1980

Pentimento; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 78 min; dark satire on the perverted enjoyment of power in society; Cast: Helen Hedy, Trix Zwartjes.

Brabant Biënnale (Brabant Biennial); group show; Kultureel Sentrum, Tilburg (NL).

He, kijk pompoenen! (Hey Look, Pumpkins!); New Year’s Eve event; compositions and improvisations with Huub ten Hacken, Teun Hocks, Monika van der Zwan, Herman Brand. Jeugd en Muziek Vlissingen.

Alles voor Niks (Everything for Nothing); music theatre for children; with Maurice Horsthuis (lyrics and music), Elja Pelgrom and Han Römer (acting and singing); Shaffy Theatre, Amsterdam (NL); 2 January 1980.
Further → information.

Een Per Ongelukken Avond (An Evening by Accident); music theatre with Kees Klaver (trumpet, piano and crackle synthesizer); different locations, Brussels (BE), Rotterdam (NL), Arnhem (NL) and Delft (NL).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; jazzconcert; Festival International de Musiques Improvisees, Sens (FR).

1979

Breda, Schaam Je (Breda, Shame on You); event organised to modernize the Cultural Centre De Beyerd at Breda, into a Centre for Modern Art; Het Turfschip, Breda (NL); 13 May 1979; Participants from Breda: Sef Peeters, Marius Boender, Harry de Kroon, Martin van Opdorp; Almost 100 artists from Holland, Belgium and Germany, participated with happenings, performances, installations.

Aanvallen van Uitersten (Attacks of Extremes); music, performance, dance, installations, Lantaren Rotterdam (NL); 14 – 15 December 1979; Participants: Marius Boender, Teun Hocks, Kees Klaver, Rob Malasch, Sef Peeters, Wies Toebosch, Michel Waisvisz, Monika van de Zwan, Maarten Biesheuvel accompagnied by Louis Toebosch, Maurice Horsthuis, Harry de Kroon, Misha Mengelberg.

Duets with Guus Janssen (piano), Teo Joling (mime); presentation Wessel Ilcken Award 1978 Incentive Prize to Stichting Claxon (Maarten Altena, Michel Waisvisz); Bimhuis, Amsterdam (NL); 31 October 1979.

Moniek Toebosch & Michel Waisvisz; music performance; Beursschouwburg, Brussels (BE), Polytechnics University, Twente (NL), Jazz-Bunker, Rotterdam (NL), Agnescollege, Leiden (NL), Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam (NL).

Moniek Toebosch & Michel Waisvisz; with Alex van Warmerdam; music performance; Electronic Music Festival, Bourges (FR).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; music performance in Ikoon; choreography by Ton Simons; live on stage by Werkcentrum Dans Rotterdam (NL); De Lantaren, Rotterdam (NL), Shaffy Theater, Amsterdam (NL).

Moniek & Michel; ten open-air concerts; Toer-in Festival; Noord-Holland (NL).

Moniek & Michel; two concerts; Casa Nova-Fair Festival, Ahoy Complex, Rotterdam (NL).

The M & M and M & M Show; four performances; De Meervaart, Amsterdam (NL); Special guests: Teun Hocks, Lodewijk de Boer, Joop van Tijn, Peter Faber.

Dhr. en / of Mevr. – 18 operettes in bedrijf (Mr and / or Mrs – 18 Light Opera’s in Operation); mime, acting and music; premiered in Knokke (BE), Amsterdam (NL), Rotterdam (NL), Utrecht (NL); broadcasted on Belgium National TV; Participants: Teo Joling, Kees Klaver, Teun Hocks, Michel Waisvisz (lightning).

1978

Avonden met Moniek & Michel (Evenings with Moniek & Michel); music performance; Shaffy Theater, Amsterdam (NL).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; concert; Electronic Music Festival Studio, Fylkingen, Stockholm (SE).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; jazz concert; The Harmony, Frankfurt (DE).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; jazz concert; The Jazz Marathon, Oosterpoort, Groningen (NL).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; jazz concert; Literair MuziekTheater, Stichting BZZTH, Oosterpoort, Groningen (NL).

Waisvisz & Toebosch; music performance; on the occasion of the presentation of Crackle, Claxon record no. 1 by Michel Waisvisz; HOT-Theater, The Hague (NL); Participants: Teo Joling, Maarten Altena, Maurice Horsthuis.

Ze zeggen dat ze zingt (They Say She’s a Singer); film by Ike Bertels; 16 mm; for Dutch National TV by VPRO.

Ze zeggen dat ze zingt (They Say She’s a Singer); improvised solo-music-theatre and interval-movie; with Kees Klaver, Appie Vermeeren, Bernd Wouthuijsen; staged at 30 theatres.

Joyfull Anticipation, installation and performance; De Appel, Amsterdam (NL).

Brabant Biënnale; (Brabant Biennial); group show; Kultureel Sentrum, Tilburg (NL).
Toebosch presented:

De Mantel der Liefde (The Ten Commandments); acting; film by Adriaan Ditvoorst; 110 min; parody on the ten commandments; Cast: Willeke van Ammelrooy, Anne Wil Blankers, Mimi Kok, Hans Boskamp, Hans Croiset, Rijk de Gooyer, Joost Prinsen.

1977

Het Muziektheater van Moniek & Michel, (Music Theatre of Moniek & Michel); performances with cracklebox, synthesizer and singer; Holland Festival, De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam (NL).

Regina; texts, music and acting with Michel Waisvisz; Theater Achterom, De Lantaren, Rotterdam (NL). Participants: Maarten Altena, Derek Bailey, Teo Joling, Wiesje Voss, Harry de Kroon, Maurice Horsthuis, Margreet van Dam.

Mathilde bestelt een componeerautomaat; (Mathilde Orders a Composing Machine); text and music with Michel Waisvisz; organised by STEIM; Shaffy Theater, Amsterdam (NL), Koninklijk Conservatorium, Den Haag (NL).

Met Moniek & Michel de Kerstnacht door (With Moniek & Michel Through Christmas Night) performance; Shaffy Theater, Amsterdam (NL).

Solokonsert voor recensent en fotograaf (Solo Concert for Critic and Photographer); with Rudy Koopmans of Dutch daily newspaper De Volkskrant; performance; 20 min.

1976

Het Konsert (The Concert); jazz concert; with Michel Waisvisz, Maarten Altena; Xenakis Festival, De Vleeshal, Middelburg (NL).

Michel Waisvisz & Moniek Toebosch; jazz concert; De Kroeg, Amsterdam (NL).

De Elektriciteit (The Elecricity); music theatre; with Michel Waisvisz, Maarten Altena, Alex van Warmerdam, Steve Lacy; Frascati, Amsterdam (NL).

The Rocky Horror Show; acting as Magenta, musical by Richard O’Brien; Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam (NL); Cast: Hugo Metsers, Derek de Lint, Trudy de Jong.

Hello Darling, Is It Raining Outside?; 8 mm film; 30 min; with Ron Derksem (lightning, sound, pictures), Kees Houwer (co-production).

1975

Upstairs, There’s a Kind of Fashion; 16 mm film; 10 min; with Floor Peeters (camera, lightning, editing), Kees Houwer (general assistance).

Michel Waisvisz & Moniek Toebosch – Evening About Jazz; with Maarten Altena, Hugh Davies; Bimhuis, Amsterdam (NL).

1972

Spectator; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 11 min; about the relation between man and woman, characterized by power and dominance; Cast: Chris Manders, Lodewijk de Boer (music).

Student at Academy of Art and Design St. Joost, Breda (NL); until 1975.

1970

Seats Two; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes, 10 min; two women, next to each other on a couch, looking at a picture of a mountainous landscape; Cast: Trix Zwartjes.

Through the Garden Into the Living; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes, 22 min; from the series Home Sweet Home; Cast: Trix Zwartjes, Lodewijk de Boer.

1969

Eating; acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 10 min; three women with masks; Cast: Trix Zwartjes, Nelleke van de Krogt.

Home Sweet Home (Spare Bedroom); acting; film by Frans Zwartjes; 18 min; two gloomy characters playing a claustrophobic game of attraction and rejection; Cast: Chris Manders.

Moniek Toebosch starts acting (and singing) in underground movies of Dutch filmmaker Frans Zwartjes and other Dutch film directors.
Further information → source 1, source 2 and source 3.

Moniek Mikrofoniek; performance; Keuze B69, Noord-Brabants Museum; Den Bosch (NL).

1968

Graphic Music; compositions and improvisations; with Peter Meel, Loes van Ruth, Manuel Cooymans; until 1970.

1967

The New Electric Chamber Music Ensemble; vocal improvisation; with Remco Scha, Hans van Beers, Paul Panhuijsen, Piet Verdonk; until 1968.

Moniek Toebosch

The way in which Moniek Toebosch (Breda 1948 – Amsterdam 2012) expressed herself in her work as an artist was incomparable. In Metropolis M (2013, no. 1) she was posthumously characterized as: “fearless, provocative and absolutely unconventional”. Toebosch shifted effortlessly between various art forms, without any regard whatsoever for the rules. She appeared as performer, sound artist, film actress, theatre-maker, text writer, and in the visual arts she worked as a painter, video-artist and happily incorporated the latest technology in her installations and projects for public spaces.

As an artist she also generously accepted the responsibility she felt for the artistic community. This was apparent in her many roles: as an inspiring teacher and mentor at various art schools, a director at DasArts, (De Amsterdamse School, Advanced Research in Theatre and Dance Studies), a member of juries and advisory boards, as an often invited speaker / performer, a member of the Arts Council, and a supervisor of the PhDArts team, guiding professional artists in their doctoral research at Leiden University.

With the exception of one year spent at the music conservatory in Tilburg, she received her art education at the St. Joost academy in Breda, where she graduated rather atypically from the fashion department with a 16 mm film. This was not a complete surprise however, since at the time she came in contact with Frans Zwartjes, an artist and musician but mostly known as an experimental black-and-white filmmaker. As his favorite silent protagonists he manipulated his wife Trix and Moniek Toebosch in outrageously absurd situations. Looking back, this collaboration was to define her artistic endeavors. At that time her signature theatrical courage, uninhibited freedom and openness undeniably defined her as artist.

She exploited these qualities to their fullest in her legendary anarchistic music-theatre performances from the seventies in collaboration with Michel Waisvisz. He played electronic music on the crackle box he had invented as she improvised wild singing performances.

The highlight of Toebosch’s theatrical career was Aanvallen van Uitersten (Attacks of Extremes, 1983) her presentation of a remarkable evening program for the Holland Festival that took place at the well attended Carre Theater in Amsterdam, broadcast live on television as part of a series by VPRO. The most notorious evening included Glenn Branca and his band playing terribly loud music, a sensational fashion show and the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Ivan Fisher that was supposed to perform the Prelude of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde and accompany Toebosch as mezzo soprano singing the Liebestod. As she appeared from the wings onstage, the conductor walked off. Disgusted by the noisy commotion, he tapped his baton, signaling his departure with a good portion of the orchestra following at his heels. What happened next was breathtaking as we watched Toebosch mobilize her grandiose talent for improvisation. Begging the remaining members of the orchestra to stay, they timidly began to play under her direction. Dressed in her magnificent costume as opera Diva she began to sing, holding notes and jumping up into the air to reach the high ones.

Much of her later work was created in response to specific requests, commissions and contexts. With finely honed antennae for what was happening around her and in the world, she was very much in tune with the zeitgeist. She persistently created new, adventurous work with verve and flair. Even though the work often included her very personal voice, was light-hearted and not at all moralistic, the outcome was never the same. An important example is the nationally recognized Engelenzender (Angel Radio Station, 1994 – 2000) on the Houtribdijk. She was asked to come up with a proposal for a public work with the theme of shelter / refuge. Instead of proposing a physical object or monumental structure, Toebosch turned to her love of driving for inspiration. The car, routinely taking you back and forth from home, is the shelter where you truly feel at ease. And if you can listen to angels singing from your car radio, the experience is made perfect. The site she chose was a 29 kilometers long, narrow stretch of the dike between Lelystad and Enkhuizen, straight through the Ijsselmeer, with an endless view of water on both sides. She herself sang all of the angels in countless variations; high and low, soft and loud, choral and solo about faith, hope and love.The only material aspect of this work consisted of the blue signs posted on the dike, announcing the radio frequency “Engelen / Angels, FM 98.0 Mhz”.

Art-historians have a hard time categorizing her body of work. Even though as an artist she typically used performance, sound and language, one cannot pin point her work through her choice of specific materials, a reoccurring theme or particular disciplines.

At several international exhibitions she presented her impressive and moving installation Les Douleurs Contemporaines (Contemporary Sorrows). Hundreds of different size loudspeakers were placed to form a walking trail for the exhibition space. The sound they produced was a sequence of horrified cries, waling, sobbing, and crying women and children. It was the middle of the nineties and the news was filled with daily catastrophes from war zones…

The proposal for an exhibition of her work instantly led Toebosch to an unparalleled alternative. She made a video of herself behind a desk, dressed in a conservative suit, and greets the viewer with Welkom, gaat u zitten (Welcome, Please Take a Seat). She proceeds to describe her work verbally. It was, in essence, a type of performance that allowed her to express her own ideas, as was the case when, about two years before she passed away, she presented herself as her alter ego Paul Rubens. With combed back hair, heavy rimmed glasses, a severe looking outfit and a distorted low voice she made it clear that there was also a male soul residing inside her. At the same time she shot footage of De Strijkrol (The Role of the Ironer), which was a rather meditative film. It shows her hands slowly pushing white linens through an ironing machine and carefully folding them, an act which she keeps repeating peacefully. It is an intimate, domestic activity, driven by the sound of Toebosch’s sturdy shoe on the pedal.

Her last performance before her passing, Erasing and Recovering on a Saturday Afternoon, was like a fairytale. Dressed all in white she climbed onto an elephant and rode it slowly through a rainy Oude Warande Park in Tilburg, which she had known as a zoo in the past. The elephant was dragging a harrow, simultaneously erasing traces of old, and turning the soil in preparation for something new.

Contact

Stichting Moniek Toebosch
Hoogstraat 151
1600 Sint-Pieters-Leeuw
Belgium
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Former archive of Moniek’s oeuvre:
archive.moniektoebosch.nl

Condolence book for Moniek:
memories.moniektoebosch.nl

More videos on The World Explained:
welcome.moniektoebosch.nl

Website by:
www.minddesign.info