Ramon Hulspas and Erik Vermeulen are two young artists living and working in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. Hulspas and Vermeulen first met in the mid ’90s through the Eindhoven skateboard scene. They formed the collective Æ in 2002 after a popular underground venue was torn down, discovering the creative possibilities of squatting. Each artist also has an independent practice and participated in a temporary project occupying the Van Abbemuseum together with artists Erwin van Doorn, Sarge Vermeulen, and Aaron van Erp with the goal of interacting and sharing conversations with its public.

Hulspas and Vermeulen have firsthand knowledge of Eindhoven’s local artistic scene, which in this city has a double character of autonomy and collaboration. There is a sense of strong support among creative people in Eindhoven that has grown perhaps because of the geographical and symbolic position of Eindhoven within the Netherlands, where it is considered a minor, provincial city, or perhaps because of the history of squatting in the city particularly among the local art scene. Through this conversation “at a distance,” Hulspas and Vermeulen’s in-depth knowledge and love for this city-town, and its effects on their individual and collaborative practice is explored.

This is the second in a series of conversations organized by Museum as Hub Fellow Ivet Reyes Maturano in conjunction with the exhibition Museum as Hub: Be(com)ing Dutch at a Distance.