Summer Residency by Eady van Acker and Jeltje Schuurmans
07.09.24 - 15.09.24
RESIDENCY PROGRAM
Apoptosis
Since 2023, PONTI has organised a yearly summer residency program for artists, a response to the chronic shortage of affordable studio space in the city. In February, a large-scale protest in Antwerp highlighted this issue. Through its residency program, PONTI offers artists the opportunity to create new work without limitations. They also get a chance to exhibit their work at the gallery afterward. Jeltje Schuurmans and Eady van Acker were selected from twenty applicants for this residency.
The central theme of the resulting exhibition 'Apoptosis' is memory and the ways in which our body and mind engage with the past. What does it mean to remember, and what do we store within our bodies? Schuurmans and Van Acker have each approached this theme in their own way, resulting in a mix of wall sculptures and an installation that explores the transformation of body, mind and memory. They have worked with materials such as metal, ceramics, epoxy and latex. The title of the exhibition refers to apoptosis, the biological process in which old cells die to make room for new ones, serving as a metaphor for letting go of memories and creating space for new experiences.
Since 2023, PONTI has organised a yearly summer residency program for artists, a response to the chronic shortage of affordable studio space in the city. In February, a large-scale protest in Antwerp highlighted this issue. Through its residency program, PONTI offers artists the opportunity to create new work without limitations. They also get a chance to exhibit their work at the gallery afterward. Jeltje Schuurmans and Eady van Acker were selected from twenty applicants for this residency.
The central theme of the resulting exhibition 'Apoptosis' is memory and the ways in which our body and mind engage with the past. What does it mean to remember, and what do we store within our bodies? Schuurmans and Van Acker have each approached this theme in their own way, resulting in a mix of wall sculptures and an installation that explores the transformation of body, mind and memory. They have worked with materials such as metal, ceramics, epoxy and latex. The title of the exhibition refers to apoptosis, the biological process in which old cells die to make room for new ones, serving as a metaphor for letting go of memories and creating space for new experiences.