"THAT's IT!" (+3 FREE minutes)

An all-round show

Visual artist Joëlle Tuerlinckx ventures into new territory: the theatre. And she immediately creates an ‘all-round show’ in which she again draws from her vast archive. A part of that archive – images she uses to ‘theatricalise’ the world – was the basis of her impressive solo exhibition in Wiels (2012-13).

Tuerlinckx wants to remove the art world from its stereotypical setting of galleries and museums and put it on the stage. Her partner in crime is artist Christoph Fink, with whom she has been working for many years on a sound archive in which they keep recordings of village bands, and also lectures, real or fictitious interviews, etc. In the manner of a silent film, Fink will accompany Tuerlinckx’ images with a soundtrack. A third pillar in Tuerlinckx’ ‘theatre laboratory’ consists of text; she also frequently uses texts in her artistic work. Theatrical illusion and imagination take control.

THAT’S IT! was created in April 2014 at STUK (Leuven) and at Tate Modern (Londen).

Tuerlinckx’ installations, drawings, films and videos seem simple but are actually immensely complex set-ups. … What you see in the exhibition space may at first glance appear to be a little dry, but on closer inspection you perceive a great deal of vitality and humour. Which is why Tuerlinckx’ oeuvre charms us as well as encouraging us to reflect.’ Ive Stevenheydens, Agenda

‘It is difficult to know what Joëlle Tuerlinckx is doing, since, paradoxically, she is very consciously doing something she doesn’t know. Or rather, she is concentrating very hard on not knowing what she is doing.’ – Frank Vande Veire, De geplooide voorstelling (Brussels Yves Gevaert, 1997)