The Argos Arts Centre regularly presents group exhibitions on original themes. For example, in 2009 it organised a surprising exhibition on the character of the extra. “Cantemus – Choirs, the Sublime and the Exegesis of Being”, one of the exhibitions running at the moment, brings together a number of videos on the theme of the “choir”. Instead of devising the customary tour, all the videos are projected on the same screen, so you cannot “channel hop”. The work of the Polish artist Artur Zmijewski often takes the form of a social experiment. In Repetition, he presented the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment that showed how quickly people become sadistic when the situation lends itself to it. Argos is screening Zmijewski’s Singing Lesson 2, a video that shows a rehearsal of a deaf children’s choir. The actual concert at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig is not completely in tune, but it does yield an interesting and occasionally moving result. Sven Johne’s Wissower Klinken, on the other hand, is about a group of nature guides who lost a colleague on a mountain hike. As a tribute to their deceased colleague, they sing a requiem together.

(Guido van der Werve, “Nummer vier (I don’t want to get involved in this, I don’t want to be part of this, talk me out of it)”, 2005 © Courtesy of the artist & Juliette Jongma, Amsterdam)

Guido van der Werve provides a lighter touch. The Dutch artist’s videos ooze romance and Nummer vier (I don’t want to get involved in this, I don’t want to be part of this, talk me out of it) is no different. Images of breath-taking nature and a choir playing Mozart’s Requiem on a boat end, surprisingly, with a sample of pure slapstick. With three videos – and a spatial installation by Tobias Putrih in the shape of seats – “Cantemus” is a modest exhibition. It is, however, definitely worth a visit. If you haven’t had enough, you can always take a look at the excellent video installation by Vermeir & Heiremans, as well as a selection of films screened under the heading Sweet Protestations: Performing Reality in Public Space.

Cantemus – Choirs, the Sublime and the Exegesis of Being
> 1/4, wo/me/We > zo/di/Su 11 > 18.00, €3/5,
ARGOS, Werfstraat 13 rue du Chantier, Brussel/Bruxelles,
02-229.00.03, www.argosarts.org

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