Benjamin Verdonck

°Antwerp (BE), 1972 | lives in Antwerp (BE)

Benjamin Verdonck is a writer, visual artist and theatre director. The political context and the narrative of the city and its inhabitants are the basis of his work, both in the theatre and the public space. Verdonck however, does not make garish statements about social reality, but instead works with enigmatic images and subtle interventions. For his work ‘Kalender’ (2009) over the course of 365 days he initiated more than 150 activities in the city of Antwerp that play on traditional holidays, the progress of the seasons and geopolitical shifts.

Vogelenzangpark 17bis, 2012

In the context of TRACK Verdonck continues his research into the strength and function of theatricality in the public space. He appears in Vogelenzang Park, a hidden piece of Ghent on the Blaisantvest, with some social housing and a clubhouse where local senior citizens come together to play cards or shuffleboard. In a large leafy tree Verdonck realised a faithful replica of one of the bungalows in the park, a typical piece of architecture from the fifties. The replica is too small to be accessed as a tree house, but does fill the spectator with a desire to withdraw to a place where he or she feels free and can reflect.

Vogelenzang Park
Wheelchair accessible, with assistance

abc, 2012 in Maria Goretti Church ( open from Tuesday till Friday: 12:00 tot 18:00 - Saturday till 5pm - Sunday till 3pm)

Not far from the Vogelenzang Park, in the Maria Goretti Church, we can see Benjamin Verdonck’s second contribution. Verdonck has already developed his own alphabet – he links the letters to brand names in the supermarket: the ‘a’ is a carton of Alpro and ‘b’ is the packaging of Bifi sausages. Together with the older children at the Mosaic School he brainstormed about which letter they associate with which brand. With this exercise he playfully and rebelliously confronts them with the power of the capitalist model. From this school context Verdonck developed an installation that represents the ‘first’ sentence in Old Dutch. All the letters in ‘olla Hebban vogala nestas [...]’ (11th century) are represented by way of the typical mass products in his alphabet, which he crafts from various materials. With this work he refers to the schoolchildren who are busy assimilating the Dutch language. But it also refers to the secular and regular worlds that encounter one another around the school and church. ‘Olla Hebban vogala nestas [...]’ (‘All the birds have started to build their nests, except me and you. What are we waiting for?’) can be interpreted both as a love poem and as a religious metaphor.

Maria Goretti Church, Blaisantvest 37
Wheelchair accessible, with assistance
Saturday open until 5 pm, Sunday until 3 pm

This project was realised in association with the KVS and Toneelhuis.