Gedeelde grond (‘Shared ground’) 20: listen to a new episode with Julia Eckhardt
Gedeelde grond (‘Shared Ground’) is a series of conversations with arts professionals from Flanders. What are their dreams? What are their concerns? We asked Julia Eckhardt, founder and artistic director of Q-O2. For twenty years, this Brussels-based workspace has been a leading name in sound art and experimental music.
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Summary
Q-O2 is an interdisciplinary laboratory for sound art and experimental music, where artistic research takes centre stage. Under the leadership of Julia Eckhardt, the workshop evolved from a music ensemble (in 1995) into a space dedicated to residencies free from production pressures, offering room for reflection, exchange and knowledge-sharing.
Before 2006, workshops were not yet included in Flemish cultural grants. “Together with eight or ten other players in the field, we were, in a way, at the very beginning of that category. We played contemporary music and the practice became increasingly interdisciplinary; subsequently, interest grew in process, research and that sort of thing. It went far beyond simply producing art. That is something the politicians really picked up on. They took a good look at what existed, and then created a new category for workshops, which I still think is fantastic.”
Julia works on development in the broadest sense of the word. “On the one hand, there is the development of an individual artist and their work. At Q-O2, we view development more holistically; it’s about artists we take on in residency who wish to undertake research that goes beyond their own practice, and without necessarily having a productive end goal.”
Eckhardt emphasises that this artistic development is not only individual but also collective: artists share questions and support one another. Q-O2 facilitates this exchange through publications, festivals and discussions. “We currently have someone in residence who is exploring how she can use AI applications to generate samples. I don’t yet know where this will lead her, as she has only just begun. But this year we do have our Oscillation festival, centred on the theme of technology and the interplay between technology and diversity. “How does it impact [artistic, social] diversity when technologies are misused, or when new technologies emerge?”
Oscillation festival takes place from 24 April until 3 May 2026 in Brussels.Visit the website for more information.
