Human Labels / 100 Identity Cups

Nowadays, there is lots of labelling on the social and not-so-social media. We are for or against. Left or right. Realist or dreamer. On bumper stickers and coffee cups, it seems as if we only have one distinguishing characteristic: ’I am a fisherman, or a Limburger, or a whatever’. A Syrian doctor suddenly becomes a transmigrant; an unemployed bookkeeper from Mauritania becomes an economic refugee; and when he accepts a lucrative new job in Kenya, IT expert Bart becomes an expat. We are all, however, variations on the same theme: the ‘human being’ with his/her wealth of characteristics.

With his installation Human Labels / 100 Identity Cups, Peter De Bruyne wants to raise waves that wash against that wave of polarisation. Throughout the season, the installation will evolve from stigmatizing labels into a broader view of who we are (and who we can be). Artists and visitors are invited to participate by replacing existing Cups with alternatives. Youngsters will be able to take part in a number of workshops on this theme.