You are warmly invited to the summer edition of the Civilisations art fair in Brussels, opening on Wednesday June 3 at 11am. We’ll be exhibiting at Galerie Harmakhis, Rue des Minimes 3.
My new exhibition “A Party for the Gods” is inspired by the seminal word-painting of the American poet John Giorno (1936–2019): “WE GAVE A PARTY FOR THE GODS AND THE GODS ALL CAME”.
The exhibition brings together 11 antique African masks that deeply resonate with Giorno’s poem. On selected occasions, a village invited “the gods” into their daily life. Masked performers would emerge from their otherworldly abode to guide, protect, entertain, judge, heal, or mediate with the invisible world.
Across Africa, masks were never simply objects to be observed. Activated through dance, music, costume, and performance, they allowed the wearer to temporarily cease being himself and become a spirit, ancestor, or supernatural force. Giorno’s phrase evokes precisely this moment when the otherworldly enters the human realm.
“A Party for the Gods” is conceived as a gathering of presences, each mask carrying its own psychology and energy. Together, the 11 masks create a conversation about ritual, metamorphosis, and the timeless human desire to bring the spiritual into our daily life. The exhibition imagines the masks not as isolated artworks, but as invited presences gathered once again - a temporary assembly of gods, spirits, and forces embodied through wooden sculpture.
Lastly, the celebratory spirit of Giorno’s line perfectly suits our ambition for five festive days in Brussels next month, surrounded by extraordinary masks and spirited conversation. I hope to welcome you there for another duende experience.
The opening times of the fair are:
Wednesday 3 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Thursday 4 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Friday 5 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Saturday 6 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Sunday 7 June: 11 am to 5 pm
My new exhibition “A Party for the Gods” is inspired by the seminal word-painting of the American poet John Giorno (1936–2019): “WE GAVE A PARTY FOR THE GODS AND THE GODS ALL CAME”.
The exhibition brings together 11 antique African masks that deeply resonate with Giorno’s poem. On selected occasions, a village invited “the gods” into their daily life. Masked performers would emerge from their otherworldly abode to guide, protect, entertain, judge, heal, or mediate with the invisible world.
Across Africa, masks were never simply objects to be observed. Activated through dance, music, costume, and performance, they allowed the wearer to temporarily cease being himself and become a spirit, ancestor, or supernatural force. Giorno’s phrase evokes precisely this moment when the otherworldly enters the human realm.
“A Party for the Gods” is conceived as a gathering of presences, each mask carrying its own psychology and energy. Together, the 11 masks create a conversation about ritual, metamorphosis, and the timeless human desire to bring the spiritual into our daily life. The exhibition imagines the masks not as isolated artworks, but as invited presences gathered once again - a temporary assembly of gods, spirits, and forces embodied through wooden sculpture.
Lastly, the celebratory spirit of Giorno’s line perfectly suits our ambition for five festive days in Brussels next month, surrounded by extraordinary masks and spirited conversation. I hope to welcome you there for another duende experience.
The opening times of the fair are:
Wednesday 3 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Thursday 4 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Friday 5 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Saturday 6 June: 11 am to 7 pm
Sunday 7 June: 11 am to 5 pm