Paky Vlassopoulou
Smoking and Waiting. Waiting and Smoking. (The Stranger I)​, 2017

Performance in public space
Variable dimensions
Unique

Taking the public space as a starting point, where unexpected, absurd, and random encounters happen every second, this work aims to explore the daily use of public space and question the proximity between people sharing the same urban landscape. What does it mean for someone to stand still in the same spot for a long time in a city like Antwerp, seemingly without reason, under the current (turbulent) political climate and aggressive immigration policies? For four days, at the junction of Oostenstraat and Mercatostraat, a performer stood still, waited, and smoked. On the last day of the performance, at the request of local residents, the police approached the performer to investigate his intentions. At the same time, a woman living in the neighborhood was surprised to learn that the performer was part of a visual arts project. Until then, she had thought the performer was homeless and, out of respect for his own dignity, he had refrained from asking for help.

Text by the artist (slightly modified)