PROJECT

With “Familiestraat” Thomas Verstraeten explores the truly extraordinary, but also perfectly normal street where he lives right in the heart of the Seefhoek in Antwerp – one of the most vibrant parts of the city. Since 2020 Thomas inventoried and described the day to day life, which he then proceeds to examine by establishing links between the happenings in his street in reflection to what is happening all around us in the world – thereby juxtaposing world history with the history of his street, and vice versa.

In Familiestraat, 200 locals will take part in a a six-hour re-enactment of certain parts from life in 2020 as faithfully as possible. Could someone dropping a flowerpot from their window, unconsciously set In motion another worldly event?

For this performance, the artist builds a  life-size replica of Familiestraat in cardboard. Familiestraat is a performance about the influence of the big on the small and vice versa. A poetic and fragile attempt to understand life.