Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodo

Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodo is a Dutch association based in Delft whose origins lie in a Catholic student circle established in 1959. The group began as the PSK, or Parochiele Studenten Kring, founded by seventeen Catholic students who did not wish to join Virgiel, Delft’s established Catholic student society. In 1960, the organization adopted the name Sanctus Wolbodo, also written Sint Wolbodo, invoking the saint traditionally associated with students and retaining an explicit Catholic identity. Wolbodo’s character changed substantially during the 1960s and 1970s. Between 1964 and 1968, the association hosted recurring jazz performances through Novum Jazz. These events attracted an artistic and progressive audience and helped distinguish Wolbodo from more conventional, hierarchical student societies. In 1967, an event involving Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, during which what is described as the first body-painting event in the Netherlands took place, marked a decisive break with the church. The organization subsequently moved away from its confessional identity and increasingly presented itself as a people’s association rather than a student-only society. It dropped the initial “St” from its name and adopted the historically styled spelling “Menschen Vereeniging,” although “Mensenvereniging” is also used. A defining principle of Wolbodo is that membership is not automatically terminated when a person finishes studying. Members may remain involved for as long as they regard Wolbodo as a place where they feel at home. This gives the association an intergenerational character and separates it from student societies whose membership is tied closely to enrollment or graduation. Despite the broader membership concept, Wolbodo maintains a strong relationship with Delft University of Technology and with Delft’s student community. The association reported approximately eighty members in 2010. Wolbodo is deliberately organized in a relatively horizontal manner. Unlike many student societies with elaborate ranks, initiation structures, and formal hierarchies, it describes itself as cultivating a form of internal anarchy. The board is the principal formal organizational body. The association’s home is Novum, a building on the Verwersdijk in Delft. Its central parlor and bar can accommodate about one hundred people. The building is owned by the Intra Muros foundation, commonly known as IM, which also handles necessary maintenance. Its program combines social, cultural, culinary, and recreational activities. Wolbodo serves dinners several evenings each week for members and non-members, holds monthly wine and beer tastings, and organizes a Sunday movie night. It also has specialized sub-societies, including Carrus Plicatus for folding-camper enthusiasts, Ornatus Caput for people interested in eccentric hats, and Wolga, a rowing group that includes the women’s sub-society Olga. During Delft’s annual reception week for incoming students, known as OWEE, Wolbodo participates in activities introducing new students to local organizations. Wolpop, an independent external organization with strong membership overlap, supports emerging artists through an annual festival. Wolbodo is therefore best understood not as a commercial product brand but as a distinctive cultural and social association whose identity is built around openness, non-hierarchical organization, artistic experimentation, and a long-term sense of community.

Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodo was established in Delft in 1959 as the PSK, short for Parochiele Studenten Kring. Its seventeen founders were Catholic students who wanted an alternative to Virgiel, the city’s Catholic student society. The new circle initially reflected its founders’ religious background. In 1960 it changed its name to Sanctus Wolbodo, or Sint Wolbodo, associating itself with Wolbodo, a saint reputedly connected with students, while preserving its Catholic character. The association developed a distinctive cultural profile during the 1960s. From 1964 to 1968, Novum Jazz organized regular jazz performances at or through Wolbodo. These concerts attracted an artistic, modern, and progressive public and helped create an identity different from the formal traditions of many student societies. A major turning point came in 1967, when Wolbodo hosted a happening involving Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. The event included what is described as the first body-painting event in the Netherlands. The episode symbolized the organization’s growing distance from church supervision and its embrace of experimental culture. By this period, Wolbodo’s activities and social environment were no longer easily defined by Catholic student association traditions. During the social changes of the 1970s, the group adopted the term “mensenvereniging,” meaning a people’s association, instead of describing itself solely as a student society. It also removed the “St” from its name. The organization later became commonly known as Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodo, using an older Dutch spelling for “Menschen Vereeniging.” This linguistic choice became part of its distinctive identity, although the modern spelling “Mensenvereniging” is also encountered. Wolbodo also made membership more open-ended than was customary among student societies. Rather than requiring members to leave once they completed their studies, it allowed people to remain members whenever they continued to regard the association as a place where they belonged. This policy broadened the group’s social base and helped preserve continuity between current students, former students, and other participants in Delft’s community. The association retained a strong connection with Delft University of Technology and the city’s student life, even after it ceased to be exclusively student-oriented. Its organizational structure is intentionally horizontal. The association has cultivated what it characterizes as a form of anarchy, limiting formal organization primarily to the presence of a board. This contrasts with student societies built around extensive hierarchies, formal ranks, or tightly defined membership stages. The arrangement supports Wolbodo’s informal and inclusive atmosphere while leaving the board responsible for basic coordination. Wolbodo’s home is Novum, a building on Verwersdijk in Delft. The main communal room is a parlor with a bar capable of holding approximately one hundred people. Novum is owned by the Intra Muros foundation, generally referred to as IM, which is responsible for maintenance. The building functions as the physical center of the association’s dinners, tastings, social gatherings, and cultural events. The association’s activities combine regular hospitality with specialist interests. It serves dinner on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays to both members and non-members. Wine tastings take place on the first Thursday of each month, while beer tastings featuring specialty and unusual beers are held on the last Thursday. Sundays are devoted to film screenings. Its sub-societies include Carrus Plicatus, focused on folding campers; Ornatus Caput, centered on humorous or unusual hats; and Wolga, a rowing group with the women’s sub-society Olga. Wolbodo also participates in OWEE, Delft’s incoming-student reception week. Wolpop is an independent organization that stages an annual festival for emerging artists; although separate from Wolbodo, it has substantial personnel overlap because many Wolpop board members are also Wolbodo members. By 2010, Wolbodo had approximately eighty members. Its continuing identity rests on the combination of a student-era origin, post-confessional cultural development, open-ended membership, a deliberately non-hierarchical structure, and a permanent social venue in Delft.

• 2010

  Reported membership

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  Wolbodo was reported to have approximately eighty members while maintaining its connection to Delft student life.

• 1970

  Shift toward a people’s association

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  During the social changes of the 1970s, Wolbodo began presenting itself as a mensenvereniging rather than solely as a student society and dropped the initial “St” from its name.

• 1967

  Break with the church

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  A happening involving Yayoi Kusama and an early Dutch body-painting event became associated with Wolbodo’s separation from church influence.

• 1964

  Beginning of the Novum Jazz period

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  Regular jazz performances organized by Novum Jazz began during a four-year period that attracted an artistic and progressive audience.

• 1960

  Adoption of the Sanctus Wolbodo name

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  The organization changed its name to Sanctus Wolbodo, also known as Sint Wolbodo, while retaining its Catholic identity.

• 1959

  Foundation as PSK

  [1]Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org

  Seventeen Catholic students founded the Parochiele Studenten Kring as an alternative to the Catholic student society Virgiel.

A non-hierarchical Delft people’s association that combines student-life connections with open-ended membership, cultural experimentation, and informal community activities.

• Association venue

  Novum

  Wolbodo’s home on Verwersdijk in Delft. Its principal parlor and bar provide space for social gatherings, dinners, cultural programming, and events, with capacity for roughly one hundred people. The building is owned and maintained by the Intra Muros foundation.

• Community hospitality

  Wolbodo dinners

  Regular dinners served on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays for both members and non-members. The dinners are part of Wolbodo’s role as an open social venue rather than a closed student club.

• Cultural and social programming

  Wine and beer tastings

  Monthly tasting events form a recurring part of the association’s calendar. Wine tastings are held on the first Thursday of each month, while the final Thursday is devoted to specialty and unusual beers.

• Film programming

  Sunday movie nights

  Weekly Sunday film screenings provide a regular cultural activity for members and the broader Wolbodo community.

• OWEE participation

  Delft

  Wolbodo takes part in Ontvangst WEEk, Delft’s incoming week of activities for new students at the beginning of the academic year.

  Outcome. Provides an introduction to Wolbodo and its activities for incoming students.

  Source
• Wolpop

  Delft

  Wolpop is an independent external organization associated with Wolbodo members that organizes an annual festival intended to support emerging artists.

  Outcome. Maintains an artistic and cultural connection between Wolbodo and Delft’s emerging-artist community.

  Source

• 1970

  Adoption of the people’s-association identityStrategy

  Background

  Changing social attitudes in the 1970s encouraged Wolbodo to reconsider the limits of a student-only identity.

  Action taken

  The organization began calling itself a mensenvereniging, removed the initial “St” from its name, and adopted the historically styled name Mensenchen Vereeniging Wolbodo.

  Aftermath

  Wolbodo broadened its public identity while retaining a strong relationship with Delft University of Technology and student life.

  Source

• 1967

  Separation from church influenceStrategy

  Background

  Wolbodo’s experimental cultural activity had increasingly diverged from its original Catholic student-association identity.

  Action taken

  Following a happening involving Yayoi Kusama, the association broke its connection with the church and continued on a more secular and progressive basis.

  Aftermath

  The break helped establish Wolbodo’s later identity as an open cultural and social association rather than a confessional student society.

  Source

• Open-ended membership policyStrategy

  Background

  Many student societies end membership when a member finishes studying, regardless of whether the person has graduated.

  Action taken

  Wolbodo chose to allow continued membership for people who still considered the association a place where they belonged.

  Aftermath

  The policy supported a broader and more continuous community connecting students, former students, and other Delft participants.

  Source

1. 1Menschen Vereeniging Wolbodoen.wikipedia.org