Zoöp Nieuwe Instituut
Zoöp observations by Frank Bruggeman
Artist Frank Bruggeman, together with Peter Zwaal, observes life in the New Garden, where they record how plants, animals and people relate to each other, from the spring of 2022 on, when the Nieuwe Instituut officially became a zoöp. In small vignettes, ranging from the rudd to the cherry tomato, he portrays the interplay between plants, animals, strollers, workers, and other humans and non-humans present in the outdoor space.
Photo Johannes Schwartz
Frank Bruggeman
Together with ecological gardener Hans Engelbrecht, artist Frank Bruggeman was responsible for designing, decorating and maintaining the New Garden from 2015 to 2021. As an artist and advisor he's still intimately involved with the relationship between Het Nieuwe Instituut and (plant-based) nature. In this capacity he participates, among others, in the working group that engages with the interventions by which Zoöp Nieuwe Instituut pursues its regenerative goals.
Understanding a zoöp
In order to assess the succes of interventions like these, it's imperative to observe and make an inventory of the many living things in and around the institute. The yearly learning process of every zoöp is categorised according to a so-called zoönomic year cycle, where an organisation goes through a process of demarcating, observing and sensing, characterising any bodies present – and using the interplay between them as a springboard from which to adjust its goals and intervene if necessary. Convoluted terms like 'the ecological integrity of the zoöp', or 'the symbiosis between the zoöp and the ecosystems in which it takes part', make the process sound complicated, but Frank Bruggeman's observations reveal how accessible, striking, and living it can be. Small examples make it easier to imagine what it means as an organisation to co-exist with all life.
![Half of a fish skeleton on a wooden deck.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FRIETVOORN_OP_HET_DROGE_3_65338b258b.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
26 March 2023
Zoöp Observations: Rudd on terrace deck
A fish sauntered into my office. "Murder", she sighed. The heron must be back in town.
➝ Read more![The common lungwort with green leaves and a few purple flowers.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FGEVLEKT_LONGKRUID_3_0fb3561cf2.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
26 February 2023
Zoöp Observations: Common lungwort
A shadowy, sickly looking plant that is nevertheless a welcome early source of nectar.
➝ Read more![Several rabbit holes in loose grayish dirt.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FKONIJNENSPOREN_1_bc6e998086.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
12 February 2023
Zoöp Observations: Rabbit tracks and traces
New arrivals battle frost, clay, and heavy traffic as they attempt to settle in the New Garden.
➝ Read more![Dry, yellow tomato skins in the pale earth.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FGEVRIESDROOGDE_TOMATENVELLETJES_961f8c2ce1.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
5 February 2023
Zoöp Observations: Freeze-dried tomato skins
Even at a seeming standstill, the New Garden secretly prepares for a change of season.
➝ Read more![An Egyptian Goose standing in a field of grass across the road from Het Nieuwe Instituut.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FNIJLGANS_EN_DRAADALG_2_e205481f1e.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
29 January 2023
Zoöp Observations: Egyptian Geese and filamentous algae
Two lovers lay claim to the pond and its overabundance of algae.
➝ Read more![A tangle of cherry tomatoes, stems and leaves growing in the sand and against a concrete wall.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FKERSTOMAAT_4_2718226dbf.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
28 August 2022
Zoöp Observations: Cherry tomato
No one invited the tomato, but it showed up to the party regardless.
➝ Read more![A close up of a green thorn apple among its leaves.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2Fbeeld4_ed66b4d645.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
21 August 2022
Zoöp Observations: Thorn apple
This prickly, hallucinogenic guest surely didn't plant itself in a neat little row.
➝ Read more![Clumps of green algae on a wooden deck, next to a pond with reeds.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FDRAADALG_3_d50b956fa7.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
15 August 2022
Zoöp Observations: Green algae
Both rampant algae and obvious methods to contain them threaten the lushness of the ponds.
➝ Read more![A view of Het Nieuwe Instituut at night, with the word 'NIEUW' in large, glowing letters on the outside, with the pond and reeds in the foreground.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FVLEERMUIZEN_2_2_3de014866d.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
27 July 2022
Zoöp Observations: Bats
Bats prefer dark habitats. Large, glowing neon signs offer the opposite.
➝ Read more![A speckled wood, a brownish butterfly with yellow dots and concentric black circles in them. The butterfly is resting on a small, light green flower.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmsfiles.nieuweinstituut.nl%2FBONT_ZANDOOGJE_1_4dc18d1b22.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
27 June 2022
Zoöp Observations: Speckled wood
This species of butterfly seems to be doing quite well.
➝ Read more