Rituals of Passage
2023
Valletta Contemporary, Valletta,Malta
Sint Lucas, Antwerp, Belgium
Rituals of Passage is the result of a co-creative project between Ryan Falzon, Aaron Bezzina, Alexandra Fraser, Yasmine Akondo, Mladen Hadžić, and Stefan Kolgen. Rituals are part of everyday life. During times of distress, they give comfort. The title is based on the fact that rituals can bring you from one stage to another physically and mentally. Post-covid rituals can help us find balance in a disrupted society where attention to mental health and well-being has become important. Rituals can help make us name and discuss these issues. The artists created the works with the exhibition space in mind, presenting them in such a way that they interact with each other and that they challenge the viewer, offering context for the audience to create their own story.
Curated by Stefan Kolgen and Ann Laenen and supported by the Flemish Community, Sint Lucas Antwerpen and Valletta Contemporary.
Chthonic Incubation
Inspired by the ritual of anatomical votives from across the ancient world, I built a sculptural homage to the womb in plastic, a material symbol of humanity’s dominance over nature. In human arrogance we strive to control our rituals of passage and our fates. I am interested in the mystery of creation and our layers of consciousness. From within this colossal symbol of femininity, I sleep. Entombed underground I am safe but unconscious. In birth, death and sleep we exist, but how can we exist unconsciously? I accompany the installation with a sound installation made from fragments of my sleep talking, words I never said yet spoken by my voice.
