CHLOË
“A story that makes sense is one that stirs the senses from their slumber, one that opens the eyes and ears to their real surroundings.”
Can story, craft and ritual function as a tool for orientation in our communities during rapidly changing times?
All pictures on this page by Ellen Claes (www.ellenclaes.com) Picture of the Henri Lejeune book by Karlijne Geudens (www.karlijneg.be)
Hi, I’m Chloe (she/her). I’m deeply interested in communities, their myths, their craft and their rituals. I try to understand how our communities relate to a changing environment.
As I see it, stories or myths play a big role in the relationship between community and environment. What are the stories we, as community (un)consciously act upon?
As a graphic designer, I see myself as part of the storytelling craft. The past 5 years I worked as a freelance designer, mainly for institutes promoting sustainable solutions such as Circular Flanders, the Shift, Groen, Act4Change and Arbeid & Milieu. I helped them with visuals to strengthen their story. That could be through the design of publications, a website, a branding process or something else.
However, the question of how stories function on a societal level kept me busy. I decided to start an artistic research at a.pass starting from January 2021 until January 2022. During this year I’ll take a closer look on how rituals function in communities. How the performance of ritual strengthens stories of the collective identity of that community. And how or if that changes the behavior of the members of that community.
To some this might look as a radical change. However, to me it feels like a necessary step to take. Through this research I hope to find a deepening that can enrich my (professional) life and that of our surroundings.
What I did
As a graphic designer I started focussing on branding and publications. I like branding because it links to my interest in identity, and I love designing publications because of the tactility to it. You can find some of my work presented on Behance.
What I will still be doing
During this year I will keep on working for the Henri Lejeune collective. A collective that I founded in 2017 and of which I’m very proud. Together with journalist Isabelle Vanhoutte we make responsible publications filled with stories about the circular economy.
What I’ll start doing
I will start a practice of reading about rituals and practicing rituals. The starting point is my personal lineage of over 600 years of farmers in a region called De Kempen, Belgium. I’m interested in the community life of farmers and the rituals they performed. You can follow my research through my Pinterest board.
Widening circles
I would love for this research to get embedded and embodied. If what you just read resonates with you, don’t hesitate to reach out and connect. If you feel like we should share thoughts or information on the topic of ritual, craft and myth these are my contact details.
chloejanssens at protonmail dot com
0032 471 525 790