In partnership with Royal Society of Arts and firstsite, Visiting Arts invited Marjolijn Dijkman to undertake a residency during April and May 2010 in the cottage that was once home to the renowned 18th century English poet John Clare. The cottage was restored last year and is now a centre which celebrates Clare’s life as well as 21st century environmental concerns.

The residency presented Dijkman, the people of Peterborough and surrounding villages with an opportunity to explore ideas, establish points of dialogue and create connections with each other. The extraordinary surrounding countryside and beautiful village of Helpston coupled with the urban fabric of Peterborough provided a fertile context in which the artist could extend her practice and engage locals with issues relating to contemporary art, ecology and land use.

Marjolijn Dijkman is a Dutch artist who is based in Rotterdam. She works in a wide range of media and has realised many events, projects and exhibitions including an installation at the 8th Sharjah Biennial in 2007, a project for Cao Yang Public Art 2009 in Shanghai, an exhibition at Bloomberg in London 2009 and research expedition sailing from Bermuda to the Azores with Maarten Vanden Eynde in 2010.

"Thank you for leading us so perfectly through this day.The keywords for this day were grounding and positioning. Each participant and aspect of the day contributed to a meaningful exchange and engagement with a very particular location and agenda. My imagination met reality and produced new insights about others and our diverse practices." Claudia Boese artist involved in the Clare Cottage residency with Marjolijn Dijkman.

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• rsa arts and ecology