A Scenic Route to Self

Everyday our bodies move through structures and spaces that put limitations on them. Prescribed routes to follow. Expectations on how to behave. We meet physical and social boundaries that challenge our notions of self.

The self. What is it? How close can one get to the ‘true’ self and how close can we get to other selves? How much can landscapes of histories, memories and imaginations facilitate a desire to connect to these inner beings? Or to what extent are they limiting decorum and structures themselves?

This group exhibition of students from the Master Artistic Research of the KABK might encourage introspection and reflection upon these questions. The various works and performances provide insight into their research-driven practices.

Several students explored the ways in which (imagined) natural scenes, marked by histories, reinforce or negate a sense of belonging; how they enable a form of shared experience. The researches show how memories can be comforting or traumatic; how songs and sounds, food and thoughts can mediate sexuality and intimacy. They investigate how to disclose and criticise systems of patriarchy and productivity that are still confidently passed on within families and societies. But also how artistic labour is valued and how artists and art audiences perceive each other.

‘A Scenic Route to Self’ invites you to experience how landscapes and people embody memories and how in our every move we take positions towards systems that were already there.

Graphic Design: Studio Budino