Mad Maiden

Museum Hof van Busleyden – 26 August to 11 December 2016

2016 was the 100th anniversary of the death of Mechelen artist Rik Wouters. To mark the anniversary, Museum Hof van Busleyden, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp, Het Firmament and the Mechelen Academy joined forces. They organised the exhibition the Mad Maiden (Zot Geweld/Dwaze Maagd) at Museum Hof van Busleyden from 26 August to 11 December 2016.

The iconic sculpture, The Mad Maiden, by Rik Wouters, served as the starting and focal point of this exhibition. The exhibition was structured around four central themes closely related to Rik Wouters' sculpture: dance, balance, beauty and morality. Colourful artists from the near and more distant past illustrated these topics. From Auguste Rodin, Edgar Degas, Marlene Dumas, Berlinde De Bruyckere, Alain Platel to Bruce Nauman, Auguste Leveque and Jules Schmalzigaug: all of whom have worked on one of these themes.

The exhibition also went beyond the museum walls and brought the mad maiden to various places in Mechelen. A strong fringe programme in collaboration with partners from various disciplines demonstrated that the themes of the Mad Maiden/Mad Virgin are still relevant today.

The Mad Maiden Curators

Dr. Herwig Todts (curator of Ensor en de Modernen at the KMSKA), Dr Valérie Herremans (curator of Beeldhouwkunst at the KMSKA), Hans Martens (Director the Academy of Fine Arts of Mechelen) and Dr. Staf Vos (researcher for Het Firmament) served as curators on the Museum Hof van Busleyden exhibition committee. Koen Van Synghel provided the appropriate scenography.