Magic

Art and imagination play a crucial role in reintroducing enchantment into the world. This exhibition explores the historical and philosophical foundations of surrealism and magic and their relevance today.

Following World War I, surrealism emerged as a response to the horrors of the modern world. Influenced by both Freud and spiritualism, artists and writers turned to the subconscious. In the years that followed, surrealists fiercely opposed the misinterpretation of philosophers like Nietzsche by totalitarian regimes. They upheld the power of imagination and intuition as an antidote to a disenchanted, mechanistic world.

Now, in the 21st century, science and philosophy seem once again open to a worldview in which imagination and intuition play an essential role. Quantum physics reveals a reality full of paradoxes and magic, while philosophy embraces a new idealism in which consciousness and art take center stage.

Five artists – Judith Aardse, Lisette Huizenga, Jacobien de Korte, Mariska Mallee, and Walter Rast – present works that contribute to the ‘reenchantment’ of our world. Be inspired by their art and discover how magic, science, and philosophy merge in contemporary artistic expression.