Artefact 2021: Wired for Empathy
Stuk, Leuven, Belgium, 2021
Artefact 2021: Wired for Empathy was an exhibition at Stuk in Leuven, Belgium that featured The Circle and the Square (2015-2017) by Lacy.
Through the artworks of around 20 international artists, Wired for Empathy explores the contemporary role and meaning of empathy: How can we understand empathy today? Who asks empathy from whom and what does that say about contemporary power relations? Which evolutions within society strengthen or undermine our capacity for empathy? How can we relearn/train empathetic strategies and behaviors? And is the concept of empathy limited to human relations, or can we expand the notion to involve relations to other living creatures?
The artists and their works in this exhibition address and challenge you to understand the other’s perspective and share their emotions. Deploying different artistic strategies; from language and visuals to the creation of participatory or immersive situations, they, in their own way, speak about care, action for kindness, and the mending of the social fabric. Artefact was made possible with the support of the Flemish government, the city of Leuven and KU Leuven Art & Science. (text source)
Curated by Karen Verschooren