The Artist / Knight

11.07.2017 - 05.11.2017

International group exhibition centered on the contemporary artistry indebted to the idealistic interpretation of the knight.

‘The Artist / Knight’ is a tribute to the poetic knight who gallantly rides forth from the mists of the Romantic past into the world. The tragic-heroic knight who falls and rises again, who conquers, rescues, defends, seeks and investigates.

The image of the knight has had a strong appeal to our imagination since childhood. Romantics dream of a knight riding a beautiful white horse. What does this archetypal symbol stand for? Do the knightly values of self-restraint and loyalty still have any meaning today?

Curator Joanna De Vos is off on an exploratory quest, creating an international group exhibition in Gaasbeek Castle centring on the tribute paid by contemporary artists to the idealistic interpretation of the knight. The works of art, comprising drawings and paintings as well as sculptures, installations and films, accompany the visitor to an imaginary world that evokes the spirit of chivalry. The work will include themes such as the self-portrait of the artist as knight, the female knight, the knight’s suit of armour and decoration, his or her character, the castle as a place of residence and the jousting game.

The mediaeval Gaasbeek castle is the ideal place for an investigation into what a knight is and how these ancient symbols link up with the world of the artist, and from there with the rest of the world.

With work from, among others, Marina Abramović, Uldus Bakhtiozina, Robert Devriendt, Jan Fabre, Lucio Fontana, Laurent Grasso, Phil Griffin, Damien Hirst, Oda Jaune, Barbara Kruger, Pere Llobera, Kris Martin, Jonathan Meese, Fabien Mérelle, Benjamin Moravec, Eleni Mylonas, Pablo Picasso, Gabriel Roca, Rob Scholte, Nedko Solakov, Adeela Suleman, Hans Van Houwelingen, Marko Velk, Andy Wauman