Middle Gate

    NLEN

    The exhibition project Middle Gate II – The Story of Dymphna is a collaboration between M HKA (Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp) and the cultural centre de Werft in Geel. Middle Gate II is the follow up to the exhibition Middle Gate, curated by Jan Hoet in Geel in 2013. The exhibition concept is closely tied to the legend of the holy Dymphna, saint of the possessed, the mentally ill and patroness against epilepsy and insanity. The legend of Dymphna shares a strong connection to the identity of Geel, "the charitable city".

    Marlene Dumas

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    (c)image: M HKA
    Semite, 2004
    Marlene Dumas
    Print , 35 x 45.5 cm
    ink, paper

    The silkscreen print *Semite* is the first from an edition of 10 prints that Marlene Dumas made in 2004. It is a portrait of a man, judging from the title of Middle-Eastern origin. On first view it’s a simple work: aside from eyes, nose and mouth, not many details are elaborated. In principle, the word *semite* refers to (most of) the inhabitants of the Middle-East, but in the expression *anti-semitism* the association in common parlance is usually with Jewry. As to whether this man is a Jew or an Arab, Dumas leaves open. She suggests that for her the difference does not matter. In her portraits, Dumas’ focus is on the specific individual instead of the generic; she does not make her protagonists into symbols for an overriding problematic issue.

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