Brugge Streetart Festival 2020

Thi

Detail from the Mary of Burgundy mural
showing O.L.V where her memorial lies.

This festival would have been planned in the confident expectation of thousands of tourists visiting Brugge in the summer, as usual. I imagine the idea of huge images on gable ends would have also been expected to appeal to the young in particular but, it was also suggested, they would help older people remember. There were two distinct subject areas for the artists to consider: Legendz and Nature. Having now seen examples of both I prefer the murals depicting Legendz perhaps because of my interest in history though the objective is to re-shape and re-connect  the old and the new within the city. The most dazzling mural for me is of Mary of Burgundy; a huge presence on Houwersstraat.

Mary of Burgundy, Houwersstraat.

There are many symbols in her portrait to be found; the euro and dollar signs signal her wealth; the French lily in her dress represents the French king and the rich Flemish citizens, merchants and nobility supporting him. The falcon refers to her death outside Brugge when she was hunting; the Gothic window stands for the church of Onze Lieve Vrouw where her tomb is situated; her enormous hands are the hands of Jesus treating men and women equally, symbols for giving, creating, forgiving and sharing. The Brugse Zot and the swan refer to Maximilian of Austria, Mary’s husband, while the coins are a symbol of Brugge's economic status which produced, effectively, the world’s first Stock Exchange.

Jeremiah Persyn, Jamz.

The artist of this mural is Jeremiah Persyn, nicknamed Jamz, a native of Brugge who worked for years as an art director,
draughtsman, graphic artist and painter, creating textiles, décor, storyboarding. He recently started a multi-media creative company, Sarazon, with his wife, Sarah Van Dale. He has worked with the aerosol which he sees, and uses, as a brush, since 1988.

Dans der Zotten.

Dans der Zotten, the Dance of the Fools, dominates the space at the side of the Concertgebouw. It commemorates the occasion in 1488 when Maximilian of Austria banished the annual market. The inhabitants of the city set up a grand fair and reputedly asked him for a madhouse to which he replied, “ Close all the gates of Brugge and that’s your madhouse.” Zot, at that time, meant a willful person with a strange sense of humour. The four different zotten also represent individual seasons and the artist chose lighter colours to merge into the shades surrounding the graffiti wall. The artist, Stan Slabbinck, began his career as a graffiti artist in the late 1980s and has created for festivals and amusement parks, drawing his inspiration from a wide range of contemporary subjects, often critical of society, always evolving, discussing the themes of nature versus people.

Stan Slabbinck

Stefaan de Croock, Strook.

Strook's Mysterious Woman
looking into town.
Perhaps this is my favourite.

The third artist is Stefaan de Croock, nicknamed Strook, born in Sint Lucas in Ghent and thus an incomer to Brugge. He always uses second-hand wood obtained from various sources like old houses, collecting wood from old beams, doors, window frames, floors, some of which may be three hundred years old but using the wood exactly as he finds it, only cutting and sawing where necessary. This philosophy implicitly criticises Society where much of what we use, is designed not to last. He has been involved for six years on the Strook Art Project and in 2014 The Huffington Post placed his work, Wood and Paint, in the top 20 most influential murals. He recently made a large work for The Crystal Ship in Ostende, using wood reclaimed from the Mercator. He has exhibited in the U.S., Denmark, Canada and Sweden and had been due to hold an exhibition in Ghent in October 2020. His exhibit in this festival, on a large, bare wall near ‘t Zand, of a mysterious woman looking into town, is accomplished in his trademark strips of wood, which he suggests, are able to bring order from chaos and, through the old wood, tell a new story.

The most extraordinary feature of all the murals to this aged writer, is that they are created by aerosol cans obviously wielded by very creative hands. And secondly, painted large on outdoor walls. Talent and ingenuity combined.

Mary of Burgundy emerging.

The information for this week’s blog is entirely provided by Leen Ryckaert, professeur extraordinaire!