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".

Sergey Bratkov / Сергій Братков

© Sergey Bratkov. Photo: Pat Verbruggen
Army girls / Армійські дівчата, 2000
Photography , 10 x (90 x 60 cm)

Army Girls is an example of Bratkov's more documentary photo series. All pictures were taken at the nuclear department of Ukrainian Military Academy, in the girl's section. Typically for Bratkov, these photographs contain subtle references to military photography of the Soviet Union, in spite of their realism. They exude a strange air of nostalgia and melancholy, which makes all the more sense considering that Ukraine hasn't had a nuclear program since the fall of the Soviet Union.