PRO and RAW

Belgian comic art at wrestling time

In a scenic landscape 150 km east of Brussels there is an old military base that today houses a vibrant and unique world of art. It is a world where different realities meet and create artistic narratives about the wrestler Hulk Hogan, the action hero Jean Claude Van Damme and dreams that have escaped from an Alfred Hitchcock film.

Since 1992 the barracks have been home to the productive and creative art studio for psychiatric patients and people with intellectual disabilities, Centre of Expression and Creativity (CEC) La Hesse. The artistic practice at La Hesse stands out from other studios of this kind by working across different genres and expertises. A good example of this is an art project that was carried out in 2007, ‘Match de Catch à Vielsalm’ (Wrestling Match in Vielsalm).

The project originated from an idea of setting up a co-operation between professional comic authors and the artists at La Hesse. Over a period of time 6 cartoonists from the comic publishing company Fremok formed an intense partnership with 6 artists with varied disabilities. In words and images the 6 couple developed their own artistic universe where they bridged fiction and reality through a mix of professional and spontaneous expressions. In stead of letting the one direct the other in a certain way they discovered a common ground from where they liberally could experiment with the media of narration and art.   

The results of the project have now come into an inspiring and original exhibition with drawings, paintings and short films which GAIA Museum is honoured to present this autumn. All together the works are an aesthetic experience that encourages the viewer to reflect on the dynamic working process behind the project.

The exhibition is of great interest for GAIA Museum as it represents a new and experimenting way to bridge the gap between ‘insider’ and ‘outsider’ art. It not only allows the audience to explore artistic expressions in new ways, it can also work as inspiration for national and international art practices.

GAIA Museum hosts the exhibition from the 6th of October 2009 to the 16th of January 2010

Opening – Saturday the 3rd of October 2009 at 13 pm

The exhibition will be opened by the artistic director of CEC La Hesse, Anne-Francoise Rouche who will present the idea behind the project and talk about the art practice at La Hesse. On top of this one of the participating authors, Olivier Deprez will do a presentation of his experiences with the project.

Café GAIA Papaya

The famous Champagne Brunch of Café GAIA Papaya can be enjoyed from 11 am to 12.30 pm for 95 kr. Please order in advance.

To startpage

Dansk version