Summer Fairy Tales

Summer Fairy Tales

Terschelling and the Dutch coastline
2007-2015

‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the sea, old and wise, could tell us stories about how relative our human actions are.’ That was the statement we presented to 70 writers, poets and sound artists, which led to the Summer Fairy Tales Project. The project included 70 giant hand-blown glass shells, specially made for the project, each containing a small speaker with recordings of contributing artists stories, songs, soundscapes and poems. Some were passionate, fiery, loud and shrill while others were dreamy, poetic, and quiet as if whispering from another time and space. The beach became an enchanted setting where people were crouched down on their knees with their ear to the shells to listen intently to these engaging tales of the sea.

The giant shells traveled for three months to thirteen locations moving along the Dutch coastline, from the Oerol festival on Terschelling to Groede, in Zeeland.