With a grant from the Flemish Community, Niko Hafkenscheid is researching contemporary approaches to mourning and dying, with a particular focus on the role of crematoria within a rapidly changing landscape of mourning. In this context, crematoria are studied as places where the personal and the ritual, the authentic and the staged, intersect. The project involves collaboration with partners from both the arts sector and the funeral industry. The proximity of the Uitzicht crematorium in Kortrijk is significant in this regard.

During the residency, Niko Hafkenscheid is undertaking an internship at the Uitzicht crematorium as part of his research. He is involved in the day-to-day operations to better understand the details, atmospheres and methods of the funeral industry today. He is engaging in dialogue with the crematorium regarding new ways of using and interpreting funeral spaces.

Niko Hafkenscheid (BE)

Niko Hafkenscheid has been active as a performer and creator on the international arts scene for twenty years. His work is consistently transdisciplinary and continually explores the symbols and layers of meaning inherent in art forms and their traditions. In recent years, he has focused on the role of traces as carriers of history. He seeks to bring the fictional reality of the past into the present and activate it as a source of friction.