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".

WAANZIN | MADNESS

(c)image:M HKA
Herinneringen aan mijn kinderjaren, 1980
Painting , 120 x 160 cm
acrylic on canvas

Cox's later work is characterised by exhaustive reflections on life and work, expressed in paintings and in his written journal notes, as well.  These are pieces where aspects of his inner life, emotional state and commitment are mutually interwoven. And given his biography, this is not difficult to understand, for a the time Cox suffered from an exhausting manic-depressive breakdown, marked by extreme emotional surges seesawing between periods of hyperactive excitability and deep mental depression. In 1979, Cox endeavors to set down his memories of his father on paper, and this results in the manuscript Nagedachtenis aan Hendricus Maria Cox (In Commemoration of Hendricus Maria Cox). It comes over as an intimate and tranquil dialogue between father and son. Following on from the example of this melancholic look back, in his final years of life Cox returns to memories from childhood, translating these in a number of paintings. In Herinneringen aan mijn kinderjaren (Memories of my Childhood), these early recollections reverberate alongside later vivid impressions of the Arizona deserts.