The work 'Enkel Zicht Naar Zee, Naar West' (Single Sight To Sea, To West) (1978) was on show during the high-profile exhibition 'Aktuele Kunst in België, Inzicht/Overzicht - Overview/Inzicht', organised in 1979 by Jan Hoet in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Ghent, the forerunner of S.M.A.K. This marked the launch of the then recently graduated Jacqueline Mesmaeker, who, despite her fascinating oeuvre like many female artists, disappeared under the radar. In recent years, the Belgian public has been able to rediscover her at venues including CC Strombeek and BOZAR. The installation 'Enkel Zicht Naar Zee, Naar West' can now be seen in the collection exhibition 'Why Are You Angry?
Projectors shine their light over large, transparent sheets of natural silk that are hung side by side and behind each other. Seagulls in full flight glide through the cloth towards each other and swarm apart again. Goldfish swim past each other and disperse again. The animals glide from one layer of silk to another, generating a multiplication of images and perspectives. In their undirected movements without beginning or end, they mingle with the space in which we find ourselves. They immerse us in an experience where reality and illusion seem to merge. 'Enkel Zicht Naar Zee, Naar West' takes us on an imaginary journey through an indeterminate time. Are we travelling through memory? Are we following a trail? Are we in a dream or in the murky waters of oblivion? Although the title of this video work refers to one of the concrete locations where the images were filmed, the pier in Zeebrugge facing west, Jacqueline Mesmaeker leaves all options open. Wind and water, like the ebb and flow of the tide, bring in and take away elements and offer an insight into a mental journey along the artist's train of thought.
11.May.21
Category:
Collection
