Resonance is a temporary sculpture and series of performances by artist Germaine Kruip, presented in Antwerp Central Station. Resonance springs from Kruip’s vivid memory of the terrorist attack that occurred in the Antwerp diamond trade district on the morning of October 20th, 1981. At the time, the artist was eleven years old and in school, not far from the site of the explosion. With this work, Kruip makes tangible and audible the long-lasting impact of this tragedy. She also proposes a harmonic counterpoint to traumas of the past.

The work consists of a five-part, horizontal brass structure, displayed along the balcony above the ticketing office in the station’s monumental entrance hall. When activated, the brass beams generate new fields of sound that travel throughout the space. The musical sculpture is accompanied by a unique composition that will be performed by five percussionists. The first performance takes place exactly forty years after the tragic events.

With Resonance the echo of the past resounds, as does the possibility to start anew and build upon the rubble of this past. Each new layer of sound builds upon the previous one; each strike of the instrument causes a vibration that moves us.

Location: locations/in the grand hall of Antwerp Central Station
20.10.2021, 6 pm
20.12.2021, 6 pm
20.02.2022, 6 pm
20.04.2022, 6 pm

Concept: Germaine Kruip
Composition: Germaine Kruip in collaboration with Tom De Cock
Percussionists: Tom De Cock, Elliott Harrison, Gaetan La Mela, Youjin Lee, Lucas Messler, Gerrit Nullens
Curator: Samuel Saelemakers
Studio and production assistant: Maxime Fauconnier
Instruments: Thein Brass
Hardware: Maison Vervloet
Resonance is presented with the generous support of Mondriaan Fund, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Belgium, Kunst in de Stad – Middelheim Museum, Axel Vervoordt Gallery and Inspiratum.
Commissioned by EUROPALIA TRAINS & TRACKS

Artists: Germaine Kruip