Meaningful Artistic Research Residencies: Encounters Between Art, Care and Society

On Thursday 4 June 2026, seven alumni from the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht (HKU), the University of Humanistic Studies (UvH), and Medical Humanities (UU) will present their experiences as artists and researchers in residence at Theater Utrecht.

During this gathering, they will share projects developed in unexpected, social, and at times challenging research environments. The residencies are part of Meaningful Artistic Research (MAR), a collaboration between HKU and UvH in partnership with The New Utrecht School.

Christie Bitar visits people who moved from Lebanon to Paris to prepare recipes that evoke a feeling of home. Nina Goedegebure collaborates with children at the Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital to imagine and visualize experiences of illness and hospital visits. Gonneke de Haan works with participants in the forest to develop a new visual language for grief and living loss using natural materials.

In addition, James de Jong observes improvisational ensemble practices as possible “ecologies of decision-making,” Nikki Ong explores how dramaturgy can emerge ecologically and in collaboration with nature from within a willow tree in Amsterdam’s Vondelpark, Mischa Schijvens gathers polyphonic stories from young women with eating disorders, and Jake Smit investigates existential questions surrounding chemsex across various locations.

About Meaningful Artistic Research

Meaningful Artistic Research (MAR) fosters transdisciplinary research at the intersection of art, healthcare, society, and academia. In collaboration with De Nieuwe Utrechtse School, independent researchers are invited to work temporarily in unusual, unexpected, and sometimes uncomfortable research environments.