Dennis Tyfus: bringing down the house

Bawler, loose cannon, and enfant terrible Dennis Tyfus may well have a reputation of being impossible to manage, his exhibition at the Beursschouwburg shows his softest side. The exhibition tour begins with a video at the top of the stairs at the entrance, in which we see the artist perform all kinds of dance moves, dressed in tightly fitting black clothing and accompanied by classical music. He uses every dramatic trick in the book to do so: he mimes climbing an imaginary ladder, rolls across the floor, and smacks himself in the face. We never would have thought that Tyfus is such a natural talent! The subtitle “Silence in the hallways please, the performance has started” plays on the illusion that this is a live stream of a performance in the same building. In another video upstairs, Tyfus again indulges in overacting: the artists pulls all kinds of strange faces, shamelessly flirts with the camera, and uses the expressive potential of his face to the full.

In a series of paintings made with colourful crayons, he presents bright, childlike compositions that exude enthusiasm. There are also four woven flags spread around the space, but these are executed in a different style. They are more like stylised, almost caricatural images that feature copious tears. Here again, Tyfus emphasises emotion and pathos. The way he settles his score with reggae – a music genre that detractors often describe as monotonous – is hilarious. He presents three record players that are red, yellow, and green respectively, and they each play one note of a bass, guitar, and vocal part, like in a locked groove. In unison, they emit a nagging rhythm that is held and deconstructed. The installation opposite is also hilarious. It features a few plaits of dreadlocks that are attached to a huge fan, and whenever the fan is turned on they wildly fly around in the air. It is brazen and funny. But after all, that is what Tyfus is known for. The artist didn’t leave the toilet untouched either. You’ll find a sticker with a message about hands and peeing.

DENNIS TYFUS: “HE MEANS WELL” RARELY MEANS SOMETHING GOOD > 29/11, wo/me/We > vr/ve/Fr 12 > 18.00, za/sa/Sa 12 > 19.00, gratis/gratuit/free, BEURSSCHOUWBURG rue Auguste Ortsstraat 20-28, Brussel/Bruxelles, 02-550.03.50, www.beursschouwburg.be