Toy Theatre – Version 2010-01
(Hasselt / Dr. Willemsstraat 14)
With this public space showing, the Belgian artist Joris Perdieus (1981) moves away from his normal mode of presentation, that is, one in which the show-box plays a central role. In For Real, Perdieus actually purposefully chooses a more intimate setting in which a small Toy Theatre – Version 2010-01 is presented. The viewer becomes involved in the illuminated fantasy world of an imaginary theatre. A show in which architecture, nature and human forms play a leading role.
The artist’s non-linear story is filled with references to neo-baroque Christian architecture, Chinese temples, fantasy buildings and human faces that also take on an architectural dimension due to the collage techniques used. A colourful story full of allusions to the history of science and a parallel dream universe unfolds throughout. Just like the planets, the story rotates at high speed as you watch. Some of Dmitri Sjostakovitsj’s stirring music for strings is the engine that gives the images their speed. Perdieus creates two different images through his work: on the one hand, is a nostalgic view into the magic of the ancient show-box and on the other hand is a contemporary commentary on the present-day profuse visual culture.