MASEREEL

For its third edition, Hold the Space features Colombian artist Juan Pablo Plazas, who has lived and worked in Brussels since 2012 and was a resident of MASEREEL in 2021. Plazas is known for his ability to draw attention to unexpected encounters by unfolding narratives about them in performances, texts, sculptures, videos, among other media.

AAAAAAAAAA draws inspiration from the disappearance of the A-frame residency houses of the MASEREEL. Imagining the “ghosts” of these structures wandering through the folklore-rich woods of Kasterlee, Plazas envisions their final cry—a haunting lament shaped like the letter “A.”

At its core, AAAAAAAAAA employs a cyanotype printing process activated directly within the showcase. Fascinated by text, the artist drew on an aerial view of the houses, interpreting their organization in space as a reflection of textual structures. He positioned these A-frame forms on the glass and covered the showcase with curtains.

Plazas embraced cyanotype because it not only captures shadows but also evokes history and “spectral” traces. For Plazas, this process serves as a way to “reveal the unseen,” imbuing the A-frames with a ghostly presence. As viewers open the curtains, sunlight exposes the paper, gradually imprinting the “ghostly” images of the A-frames. Over the course of two months, the paper will be replaced every four days, resulting in a total edition of 10 prints.

Curtains play a recurring role in Plazas’ work, reflecting his interest in theater and the interplay of light, shadow, and exposure. They dictate what is revealed or hidden. In this project, they symbolize the unveiling of the ghostly, inviting viewers to experience the work through moments of revelation. The intervention is further enriched by an audio piece that activates when the curtains open. This soundscape – created together with Sascha Alexander Trier – weaves ghostly atmospheric tones, mirroring the lament of the A-frames.

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