Place of destruction

The story of Reynaert the Fox has its roots in the Waasland region. The 'Land of Reynaert' comprises 12 Waasland municipalities, of which Sint-Niklaas will take the lead in 2023.

50 years ago, Mark Liebrecht (Marcel Oger), was the first director of the Reynaert mass play on the Grote Markt in Sint-Niklaas. On the occasion of this commemoration, in 2023 the city will again organise the Reynaert mass play and a large exhibition of contemporary art, linked to the universal and still contemporary theme of greed, jealousy and abuse of power in the story of Reynaert the Fox.
The Cultural Centre will present an exhibition on the work of Mark Liebrecht's granddaughter, Karen Oger, central artist and curator.

She became fascinated by this medieval epic because of the stories that were told at the Oger house and the attributes that were lying around at her grandparents' house after the mass play. The theme of man with his little edges, greed, jealousy and lust for power is - just like in the Reynaert the Fox story - central to her installations.

Some three years ago, she fled the hectic interior of the country. During her daily walks on the beach, she searches for traces of that greedy man. Even if to do so she has to spend hours rooting and digging in the rotting seaweed located 20 cm under the silky sand, it is there where she uncovers the traces of consumer society. With this dark place underground, she links to the lair of the Fox Reynaert.

'Burcht Malpertuus' is a place of destruction. Ignorant souls are manipulated and deviously lured in. It is a place where nefarious plans are forged. Art in the Fox's Den is theatrical, raw, satirical, animalistic and vulnerable.

Karen Oger invited some 15 contemporary artists to descend into the place of destruction with her.