MDZ Art Gallery

Sculptures, drawings, paintings, installations, collages

2001 | As part of Rotterdam Cultural Capital 2001, Stef Kamil Carlens was asked to create an exhibition on location. SKC presented in the exposition ‘Gentle Ruddy Turnstone in an Expanding Collection of Thoughts’ the universe of Ruddy Turnstone, a comic character that is a little closed and feels threatened. Ruddy wanders around places and observes a messed-up world. Public and press were very much charmed by this small character with big thoughts and this first exposition aroused the interest of several art programmers. So, Ruddy continued its way to other spaces, such as Add!ct Gallery / Kanal 20 and le Petit Château in Brussels.

2002 | People also know Stef Kamil Carlens from his musical excursions as leader of the collective Zita Swoon. SKC is renowned as a vigorous singer-songwriter as he pens lyrics that bring out a poetical universe of their own and that mingle well with mesmerizing melodies. In 2002, SKC was invited to the group exhibition Synesthetics – Pop & Art in Belgium. For this occasion he exposed several new creations at the arts centre in Mechelen. Other Belgian artists: Elke Boon, Sergio De Beukelaer, Maarten Vanden Abeele, Anne-Mie Van Kerckhoven

2003 | SKC seems to fold out bigger ambitions in the visual arts, as it is vital to him to bring out different kinds of expression to his ideas. In the fall of 2003, he prepared a solo exhibition in Antwerp that contained self-portraits, sculptures, digital prints on canvas and a huge wooden wall installation.

2004 | SKC received another assignment from Antwerp World Book Capital 2004. This project combines his art with literature. Dutch star author Toon Tellegen is writing new material in his typical one-page-short-story manner, to be set in dialogue with the work of SKC. In April 2004, he will participate to a tribute exhibition in honour of David McComb (The Triffids). “The Temporary Monument for David McComb” with curator Jean-Bernard Koeman, will also assemble contributions of artists as Heimir Bjorgulfsson (IS), Geert Goiris (B), Hermann Maier Neustadt (D), Georgina Starr (UK) Stef Kamil Carlens’ artistic wanderings cover a spectrum in the landscape of plastic arts, music, theatre & dance and is marked with his own distinguishing but honest style.