The starting point of the project was to bring prisoners from the Ghent prison and students from SKI into contact with each other by drawing. The carrier for this dialogue was 25 empty sketchbooks. Small groups of pupils, together with some of their teachers, visited the prison every four weeks and invited the detainees to draw with them in the books.
Approximately sixteen people could attend each workshop. Half of the books remained in the prison library in between workshops so that those who were interested could continue to draw in their cell. The other half of the books went back to the school. The question for the draughtsmen was to respond to each other's drawings. In this way a visual exchange took place between the participants in the books; a colorful dialogue in drawings.
'The Borderline Books' is a collaboration between S.M.A.K., the Secondary Art Institute, De Rode Antraciet and the prison of Ghent. Winnie Bauwens recorded this special collaboration and made a short documentary that will also be shown during the exhibition.
Practical information:
- Opening exhibition 'The Borderline Books' on Sunday 19 May 2019 at 11 am.
- The exhibition runs from 18 May to 14 July 2019.
- The book presentation 'Prison Drawings' takes place on Thursday 6 June 2019 at 20:00 (during the nocturne).
After Light Sensitivity, this exhibition is the second exhibition in the S.M.A.K. Beweegt pavilion that was designed by Olivier Goethals.
BOEK PRISON DRAWINGS
In collaboration with publishing house Hannibal, a selection of the drawings was bundled in the book 'Prison Drawings'. This book will be presented on 6 June 2019 during the nocturne.
The book shows an enormous diversity of impressions, impulses, styles and themes. It is also the impressive result of the thirty-two workshops that have been organized and to which almost five hundred people have taken part.
