Art 20 Times Over at the Flemish Parliament

art 20 times over at the Flemish Parliament Wilfried Van Vinckenroye www.vlaamsparlement.be art 20 times over at the Flemish Parliament Preface The Flemish Parliament aspires to serve as the heart of Flemish democracy. Drawing over a million visitors over the past two decades, it has become a permanent magnet for people who take an interest in the business of politics in Flanders. By the same token, this also makes it into one of the most visited museums for contemporary Flemish art. There is no escaping the art on offer when visit ing the legislative assembly : home to over 300 works of art, from tiny to monumental, art is all around, in every shape and form going. This booklet presents a selection of 20 works of art by Flemish artists. In a sense, choosing means los ing. But none of the choices we have made are in any way intended to detract from the merits of the works of art that were not included. The selection does provide a good impression of the art that has been gathered over the years. For each work of art, we provide details and put forward The Flemish Parliament is an open house, where visi a few observations to enable you to gain a better under tors are always treated to a warm welcome. Visitors are standing of the artist’s intent. All the more so as none of free to look inside, attend meetings, join guided tours the works collected are here without good reason. and find out more about the workings of the Flemish Parlement as the heart of democracy in Flanders. A number of works were commissioned and inspired by This booklet gives you that little extra : experience this the building and its history. Others are more geared to the house and its role in the world through the eyes of the kind of activities that take place at this Parliament, to a artists. greater or lesser extent: attending meetings, ruminating, developing vision, being creative, seeking out solutions. As the Speaker of the Flemish Parliament, please allow All of which are topics that are seen to pop up in the works me to wish you a fascinating read and tour. of art on display, alongside the big questions surrounding ‘appearance and reality’, ‘view of mankind and philoso phy’, ‘democracy and society’, and ‘today and tomorrow’. You will be every bit as surprised as I was at the richness and variation with which our Flemish artists depict the kind of things we apply ourselves to in this small piece of the world. This booklet is equally an honorary salute Jan Peumans to them. Speaker of the Flemish Parliament 3 Table of contents 1 A building walks around itself and engages in dialogue with its neighbourhood Jozef Legrand 8 2 Interactive light sculpture Monique Thomaes 10 3 Conduct, Conduit Fred Eerdekens 12 4 Global Satellite Project Joaquim Pereira Eires 14 5 Flying island Panamarenko 16 6 Lift integration Guillaume Bijl 18 7 Die Welt im Griff Denmark 20 8 Untitled Jan Fabre 22 9 Speak Berlinde De Bruyckere 24 10 Rumination on the illusion of power Roger Raveel 26 11 Flanders in the world Hugo Duchateau 28 12 The Planet Paul Van Hoeydonck 30 13 Stargazers Paul Van Hoeydonck 32 14 The Fallen Astronaut Paul Van Hoeydonck 34 15 Man with many qualities – or the poet at Nieuw Westerbork Pjeroo Roobjee 36 16 Joshua Tree – love yourself, so you can love somebody else Liliane Vertessen 38 17 Never the same, always different Liliane Vertessen 40 18 Brandt Sofie Muller 42 19 There are things and then there are things of minor importance Fred Eerdekens 44 20 Untitled Paul Sochacki 46 5 Introduction Boeck, Vic Gentils, Joris Minne and Raoul De Key ser. In 1986, the Flemish Council (the precursor of what is now the Flemish Parliament) adopted a De The Flemish Parliament started out as a ‘cultural cree forcing government institutions to spend a parliament’, further to the 1970 state reform. Since certain amount of the construction cost on art pro then, the powers devolved to Flanders have consist jects in fitting out their buildings. A great opportu ently been expanded, although culture has always nity for the Flemish Parliament to lead by example retained a special place. This is especially reflected came when it relocated to a dedicated building of its in the way the Flemish Parliament has been fitted own in the 1990s. Parliament set itself the ambi out, if only in the names of the committee rooms tious aim of subsuming the money spent on art as which are in reference to our rich artistic tradition : part of a clear vision on how art should be integrat Rubens, Bruegel, Van Dyck and the Flemish Primi ed. The idea was for art and architecture to meld tives, as well as Ensor and Permeke. Obviously the into a harmonious showcase of what Flanders has presence of art inside the Parliament is not con to offer in this regard. fined to the names of rooms. Visual art itself, and contemporary Flemish art in particular, are seen to To deliver on this new vision, a Committee for the fill the premises in abundance. Integration of Works of Art was established. From now on, it was not just the artistic merits of a given In the late 1970s, the first Committee for the Pro work of art that were considered, but also the way in curement of Works of Art saw the light of day. From which it would work in the new building. In consul this time forward, Parliament frequently purchased tation with the architects, artists were enabled to works by leading Flemish artists, including Felix De gear their work to the space it would end up serving in. The result is particularly pleasing : works by art number of practical restrictions prompted them to ists such as Berlinde De Bruyckere, Hugo Ducha come up with inventive solutions. In the years that teau, Jan Fabre or Roger Raveel are shown off to followed, exhibitions were staged in the counter their full potential. room, of which the odd work would be purchased, as was the case with Panamarenko. In doing so, the In some cases, they act to underscore the function Parliament’s collection of Flemish contemporary ality of the space, at other times they add an ironic art gradually burgeoned into what it is today. This note to the parliamentary proceedings or provide booklet allows you to scrutinise art 20 times over. an angle that puts things into perspective. They all But do not close your heart and mind to anything engage in dialogue with the setting in which they you may come across accidently. You may need to are on display do a double take on occasion, when the work of art has been incorporated into its setting as it were. In In 2002, the conversion of the former Postcheques other cases, the work of art will be shouting out to building (the Postal Cheque was a division of the you from afar, or simply sit silently waiting, tucked Belgian Royal Mail) into the ‘Huis van de Vlaamse away in a little corner. Whatever the case, each and Parlementsleden’ (House of the Flemish Members every single work of art on display is an expression of Parliament) was nearing completion. The commit of what contemporary Flemish artists have to tell tee organised a special competition for the integra us and our democracy. Each in their own language tion of (new) works of art in and around this listed and imagery. monument. Projects by Guillaume Bijl, Jozef Legrand, Monique Thomaes and Fred Eerdekens to name but a few were all given the go ahead. The considerable 7 A building walks typical of Flanders. By doing so, the altar, the holy of the holies, and to around itself and artist is looking to straddle the gap stop at various apse chapels en 1 engages in dialogue between the world inside and out route. This acts to elevate the House side of Parliament. Which is made of the Flemish Members of Parlia with its neighbourhood very concrete on occasion : when ment itself to work of art status. 2002 the weather is nice, casual passers This is the cathedral of democracy. Monumental installation with out by actually take to the benches, put And everybody choose his or her door greenery design ting them in the artistic surround own little chapel. ings of the House of the Flemish This installation encircles the entire Members of Parliament. Jozef Legrand House of the Flemish Members of ° Niel, 1957 Parliament. Yet, chances are it is not This was a commissioned work. Lives and works in Berlin and Brussels something you may ever have parti The remit was to integrate the build cularly noticed, which you simply ing in the quarter ‘through art’. Which Most of Jozef Legrand’s output tends walked by or just casually sat down is exactly what Legrand did, encir to be monumental in nature, his in on. The heart of the installation is the cling the stately office building with stallations varying from fairly large light orange walkway that has been his artwork as it were. The title puts indoor to immense outdoor pro embedded in the pavement. The path is poetically and breezily : ‘a building jects. His installations can be seen cuts across small footbridges or re walks around itself and engages in in Belgium (his native country) and cently developed public gardens, dialogue with its neighbourhood’. But in Germany (his adopted home whilst en route a flag pole shows a there is an extra layer of significance land), and to a lesser degree in The pictogram of a small house and a that was deliberately added : the ar Netherlands, Poland and Sweden.

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