mark manders exhibits sculptural artifacts amid historic brutalist residence in belgium

‘the absence of mark manders’ at woning van wassenhove

The Absence of Mark Manders unfolds across the historic Woning Van Wassenhove, a post-Brutalist residence designed by architect Juliaan Lampens in 1974. This exhibition by Mark Manders with Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens seeks to preserve Lampens’ architecture with the dignity of a permanent sculpture while embracing its original occupant Albert Van Wassenhove’s philosophy of accumulation. In stark contrast to prevailing minimalist depictions of Brutalist interiors, Van Wassenhove adorned his house to hoarder-like proportions.

While some spaces within the exhibition remain largely untouched, Manders has transformed the bedchamber, office, and kitchen into immersive stages for the aggregation of objects in line with the original occupant’s mindset. These spaces are adorned with an array of artifacts, including drawings, architectural proposals, photographs, artworks, paint pots, and what appears to be wet clay, all piled on top of one another.

an artistic reflection on architecture and heritage

The exhibition offers a distinctive perspective on Juliaan Lampens’ architectural creation while delving into the idiosyncratic world of the house’s former inhabitant, Albert Van Wassenhove. His occupancy, which extended until his demise in 2012, resulted in an accumulation of objects within the house, challenging traditional perceptions of space. Throughout the exhibition, the rooms thus offer a glimpse into the mind of a temporary occupant who lived and created within Lampens’ architectural canvas. Mark Manders’ intention, in his words, is ‘to show the house in a perfect situation. While some spaces derail when you zoom in on them, there is a kaleidoscopic element to them, as if you are looking inside a head.’

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project info:

name: The Absence of Mark Manders
exhibition designer: Mark Manders

architecture: Juliaan Lampens

museum: Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens

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