Middle Gate

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    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".

    Berlinde De Bruyckere

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    (c)image: Syb'l. S. - Pictures
    Spreken [To Speak], 1999-1999
    Berlinde De Bruyckere
    Installation , 200 x 140 x 80 cm
    metal, wood, blankets, polyester, polyurethane

    In a series of drawings called ‘dekenvrouwen’ (blanket women), Berlinde De Bruyckere introduces the human figure in her work in 1994. Sculptures follow this series of drawings, amongst others Spreken (Speaking). The sculptures are life-sized figures with realistic arms and legs, while the rest of the body is hidden under blankets. The bodies have been modelled in wax. The blankets form a kind of second skin – they function as a fur. These are pictures that include the duality of protection and suffocation, security and anxiety, safety and confusion, life and death. The blankets refer to the security of childhood, but at the same time to current pictures of the refugee camps.

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