Middle Gate

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

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Glue sniffers, 2001

Sergey Bratkov / Сергій Братков

Photography , 7 x (90 x 90 cm)

photo on aluminium

The series Glue Sniffers consists of pictures of glue-sniffing youths. The pictures are taken in a closed correctional facility for underage delinquents, on a sun-flooded courtyard with grapevines. Bratkov took double-takes using a 6x6 camera, which resulted in blurry, unclear pictures, much like the vision of a drugged individual. The series can also be interpreted as a reflection on the Soviet rhetoric of the 'Happy Soviet Childhood'.

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