Ophelia

A character from Shakespeare's work.

Ophelia is a character from Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. She is the daughter of Polonius and thus the sister of Laërtes.

When Hamlet stabs Polonius to death, her madness begins to take shape. Unable to cope with the grief, she drives the residents of Elsinore to despair with incomprehensible songs. She later drowns under mysterious circumstances in a shallow stream.

Jonas Vansteenkiste invited Artists that were inspired by the tragic and poetic power of water, personified by Ophelia. The works touch different facets of Ophelia and enter into dialogue with each other in the historic building on the Leie.

Artists:

Anouk De Clercq (BE) - Mario Leko (HR) - Xavier Tricot (BE) - Suzanne Walsh (IE) - Lawrence Beck (USA) -
Annelies Slabbynck (CN) - Eva Koch (DK) - Joël Schuurmans (BE) - Stéphanie Leblon (BE) - Ruben Bellinkx (BE)- Mieke Teirlinck (BE)

Where:

In the eighteenth century, Marktstraat 100 in Harelbeke was built as a spacious residential house. After W.W.II, the site housed the local Pipe and Tobacco Museum for decades, which zoomed in on the region's rich craft history. This collection moved to the museum in Wervik between 2010 and 2012. Since April 2014, Market Street has been an interactive place for art and culture. Under the flag of the City of Harelbeke, some 20 exhibitions were organised between 2014 and 2019, each time focusing on contemporary Belgian art.

With its own vision and network, we build a solid autonomous framework where art is central. The ambition of the Kunstenhuis is to realise 2 concept exhibitions every year, complemented by a modest programme of lectures, guided visits and nocturnes.

Kunstenhuis

Marktstraat 100

8530 Harelbeke

When:

2015

KUNSTENHUIS