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Item: Aphrodite’s Girdle

Vika Begalska

2014

Video, 00:27:30.
Materials: video, documentary, color, sound, English subtitle

Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp / Donated by the artist, 2016 (Inv. no. S0536).

Aphrodite’s Girdle is a puppet show created by the Teresa Creative Union of Artists and sex-workers (Vika Begalska, Alexander Vilkin, Marina Denisova, Taira Dance, Diana Portlend, Sergey Potapov, Karina 'Katwoman' Dulina, Baretta). The show is based on interviews and life stories of streetwalkers who were also directly involved in the creation of the performance. Juxtaposing the common view of modern society with true images of sex workers, the puppet show tinges a harsh reality with a sense of melancholy, while at the same time giving it an ironic twist. Aphrodite’s Girdle must be situated within the context of activist, post-feminist works, positioning the film not as a critique of male dominance, but rather as a critique of this critique. It evidences a sense of bravura and pride, and is a clear demonstration that the women performing in this puppet theatre have not lost control over who they are.

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The M HKA is a museum for contemporary art, film and visual culture in its widest sense. It is an open place of encounter for art, artists and the public. The M HKA aspires to play a leading role in Flanders and to extend its international profile by building upon Antwerp's avant-garde tradition. The M HKA bridges the relationship between artistic questions and wider societal issues, between the international and the regional, artists and public, tradition and innovation, reflection and presentation. Central here is the museum's collection with its ongoing acquisitions, as well as related areas of management and research.

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