PRESS KIT Bruges Triennial 2021: T RAUMA 08.05.2021 – 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT In a nutshell 3 Introduction 4-5 Artists & architects 6-17 Exhibition at the Porter’s Lodge: ‘The Porous City’ 18 About Bruges Triennial 2021 19 Public Programme, Activities for Children & Guided Tours 20 Practical information 21 Press contact 22 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT IN A NUTSHELL Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA ... is the third edition of Bruges Triennial and runs from May 8 to October 24, 2021. is a freely accessible contemporary art and architecture trail in the city centre of Bruges. is a thematic exhibition bringing together the work of 13 artists and architects — including 3 Belgians— in the public space. showcases artists and architects who respond to the complexity, versatility and dynamics of the city of Bruges. shifts its focus this year from the public space to some of the hidden dimensions of the city and its inhabitants. treads a balance between the present and the concealed, between private and public, between dream and nightmare. is complemented by a group exhibition at the Poortersloge (Porter’s Lodge) presenting about 40 sculptures, photographs, drawings, paintings and videos by national and international artists. is curated by the curatorial team consisting of Till-Holger Borchert, Santiago De Waele, Michel Dewilde, and Els Wuyts. is accompanied by a public programme packed full with an extensive range of engaging activities. 3 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT INTRODUCTION From 8 May to 24 October 2021, Bruges once again becomes the host city for an exploration of contemporary art and architecture. During the third edition of Bruges Triennial, 13 artists and architects present new temporary installations in the historic centre of the World Heritage city. The theme of this third edition is TraumA—which sees The Triennial shifting focus from the public space to a number of hidden dimensions of the city and its inhabitants. Bruges Triennial is a thematic exhibition featuring creations by artists and architects in the public space. Bruges Triennial 2021 opts for a polyphonic discourse, with space for imagination, beauty, darkness, and participation. The exhibition explores the sensed and subcutaneous space and the subjective experien- ce of the city, nourished by past and present, dream and nightmare. This edition explores the line between the visible and the hidden. Between private and public. At the same time, it also responds to the image of Bruges based on the nineteenth-century perception of Bruges-la-Morte as a symbolic city. The curatorial team, consisting of Till-Holger Borchert, Santiago De Waele, Michel Dewilde, and Els Wuyts, has selected 13 artists and architects—with 3 Belgians among them—who each in their own way react to the theme of TraumA. The participating artists and architects include: Amanda Browder, Nadia Kaabi-Linke, Jon Lott, Joanna Malinowska & C.T. Jasper, Nadia Naveau, Nnenna Okore, Henrique Oliveira, Hans Op de Beeck, Gregor Schneider, Laura Splan, Gijs Van Vaerenbergh, Adrián Villar Rojas, and Héctor Zamora. These artists devise sculptural, architectural, and organic creations that respond to the complexity, versatility and dynamics of the city of Bruges, searching the alleys and back gates to look at what is going on in the courtyards and on the construction sites of the seemingly perfect city of Bruges. Their temporary interventions and creations enter into dialogue with the city, its inhabitants, and its visitors. The fact that some of the creations involve the residents of Bruges in the creative process makes the story even more fascinating. Alongside the art route, the themes of TraumA will also be present at the exhibition at the Porter’s Lodge. “TraumA adds an extra dimension to the public or private spaces that were the subject of the previous editions: the dimension of the sensed space, where past and present, dream and nightmare claim the subjectification of the individual experience of the city and—building on the perception of Bruges-la-Morte as a symbolic city avant la lettre— also question the image of Bruges as a city.” 4 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA presents a multi-voiced discourse in which ambiguity, the imagination, and the senses are stimulated, and the demarcation between public and private space is renegotiated. The route traces a course where Bruges is discussed in all its facets, and there is room for experiment and discourse in a journey behind the scenes of the urban imagination. The starting point will once again be the Poortersloge (Porter’s Lodge), where an exhibition will also encourage reflection and imaginative res- ponses on the theme. The artists and architects are invited to question the hidden dimensions of society. Historical layers are uncovered, or forgotten, and hidden storylines discussed. There is a response to the imagination, to the beauty and splendour, but also to a sense of das Unheimliche, the ‘uncanny’ that is present underground. “Traditionally, our city derives its liveliness and magic from a pioneering role in the field of culture. With the necessary ambition to remain a cultural leader, we put contemporary art and architecture in the spotlight with Bruges Triennial. The previous editions have proven that Bruges continues to inspire artists and designers. In 2015 Bruges was temporarily an imaginary, liquid megalopolis, and ‘Skyscraper (the Bruges Whale)’ from 2018 will remain on our retina as an iconic image. With the third Bruges Triennial we dare to undress the city, we look behind the stately façades and allow the Bruges resident and the visitor to discover all the layers of the city. That requires some guts, but we are ready for that.” — Mayor Dirk De fauw Although Bruges may seem to be a dream destination, poverty, loneliness, pollution and anxiety constantly lurk beneath the surface in this seemingly picture-perfect world. Via artistic and architectural spatial interventions, Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA also brings out the less attractive aspects of our heritage city and makes them part of the cityscape. Bruges Triennial 2021 goes beyond the visible and offers a glimpse beneath the bark of the fragile city. “Now more than ever, the importance of cultural encounters is proven. The power of culture is the power of Bruges. Bruges Triennial 2021 will be a cultural and architectural edition to look forward to. The impact will be great, if—after the imposed silence of 2020—we let Bruges speak again with a solid programme of international talent in the language that is its own; the language of innovative cultural creation.” 5 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT ARTISTS & ARCHITECTS The curatorial team of Till-Holger Borchert, Santiago De Waele, Michel Dewilde, and Els Wuyts has selected 13 artists and architects—with 3 Belgians among them—who each in their own way react to the theme of TraumA. Participating artists and architects: Amanda Browder (US) 7 Nadia Kaabi-Linke (TN/UA/DE) 8 Jon Lott (US)* Joanna Malinowska & C.T. Jasper (PL/US) 9 Nadia Naveau (BE) 10 Nnenna Okore (US/NG/AU) 11 Henrique Oliveira (BR) 12 Hans Op de Beeck (BE) 13 Gregor Schneider (DE)* Laura Splan (US) 14 Gijs Van Vaerenbergh (BE) 15 Adrián Villar Rojas (AR) 16 Héctor Zamora (MX) 17 * Information on the content of the works by Gregor Schneider and Jon Lott will follow later. 6 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT AMANDA BROWDER (US) — HAPPY COINCIDENCES - VERVERSDIJK Amanda Browder creates large textile installations by working in collaboration with local Bruges residents, whom she involves from the very start of the project: the conceptual element of searching for and collecting textiles is a community practice that will already be underway in Bruges from spring 2021. A second phase begins as soon as volunteers engage in helping to organize the textiles, the needles, or learning how to stitch and sew. At that point, the opportunity arises to meet with each other and with the artist and to become familiar with the different techniques. The overall goal is to involve individuals and groups in the special experience of creation, and above all to discover that coming together to create a work of art—independent of any prior knowledge —can trigger a positive experience. In the third phase, the assembled materials are brought to the Verversdijk and installed in the public space. With vibrant colours and playful patterns, the scale changes from what was first private (donating fabric as an individual, or assisting during the Sewing Days) to a public and accessible artwork. Happy Coinciden- ces is an installation that can be surprisingly overwhelming, set amidst the bricks of the bridge, across the span of the canal, and between the windows of the houses. Amanda Browder (b. 1976, Missoula, Montana, US; lives and works in Brooklyn, New York, US). Amanda Browder is known for her large-scale textile instal- lations at public sites in urban environments. Each sculptural installation consists of collected and donated materials, which she organizes and sews together in collaboration with local communities. These large- scale sewing projects are site-specific and constructed based on impressions of the urban context, participants’ stories, and fragments of history. © Amanda Browder - City of Threads - Arlington © Amanda Browder - Fabrics Arts Center, 2019 7 08.05.2021 - 24.10.2021 Bruges Triennial 2021: TraumA PRESS KIT NADIA KAABI-LINKE (TN/UA/DE) — INNER CIRCLE — BURG Nadia Kaabi-Linke presents a circular installation of public benches that shine attracti- vely, but are rendered inaccessible by the sharp pins in their surface.