Categories: Education

National Outdoor Play Day

Photo: Rob van Hoorn

National Outdoor Play Day at Marres! 

On Wednesday, June 11, 2025, the whole country turns into one big playground — and Marres is joining in! Come play outside in our delightful city garden.

Make your own witch’s brew, smell fragrant flowers, taste fresh elderflower, and search for all the colors of the rainbow.

Let your senses be stimulated and your imagination run wild! Be sure to wear old clothes, because getting dirty is not just allowed — it’s a must!

Date: Wednesday, June 11, 2025
Time: 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Location: The city garden of Marres in Maastricht
The garden is free to enter

For parents, there’s the option to visit the Vultures & Fireflies exhibition, enjoy reading a book in the garden, or relax at Marres Kitchen.

Read more about the Marres city garden

Partners / Thanks to:

The National Outdoor Play Day is an initiative by Jantje Beton. Jantje Beton is the leading charity that, since 1968, has been working together with children to create more and better play spaces and increase opportunities for play.

Visit from Broeklandcollege

For the third time, Marres welcomed a 3rd-year VMBO-T class from Broeklandcollege in Hoensbroek, as part of a five-lesson program.

Earlier at school, the students listened to The Invisible Collection, learned about the work of artist Alejandro Galván, and started making a personal artwork with symbols about their cultural identity.

At Marres, they took it a step further: they got an interactive tour of the exhibition Vultures & Fireflies, imagined their alter ego with the help of a classmate, and helped create a large group mural.

Extended: Adventures in Slumberland

Extended started with the four-month art project Adventures in Slumberland on 15 March 2025 with a new group of members.

In this new workshop series, Extended takes young people on a creative journey of discovery. They’ll explore the magical, beautiful—and sometimes scary—world of dreams and nightmares. Dreams are more than just weird stories in your head. They let you imagine other worlds, escape the chaos of everyday life, and they can even help you come up with fresh ideas. What if you could use your imagination to actually change something?

In the spring of 2025, Extended dives deep into the world of dreams. These workshops are inspired by Mexican artist Alejandro Galván, whose exhibition Vultures & Fireflies creates a colorful dream world. His art blends stories from his neighborhood with myths, comics, and gaming culture—where fantasy and reality merge.

With the help of artists, a coach, and the facilities of Marres and the Jan van Eyck Academie, you’ll have the chance to create and shape your own dream world.

Read more about Extended Get to know more about Vultures & Fireflies by Alejandro Galván