The Antwoord concert will be a phone-free experience. Use of cellphones, smart watches, smart accessories, cameras or recording devices will not be permitted in the event space. More info HERE!

‘Die Antwoord and Roger Ballen are familia, Mr Ballen is our Number 1, our favourite artist alive on this planet, our master, and our darling friend.'
(Ninja, Die Antwoord)

To celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the Ancienne Belgique, the legendary concert hall joins forces with art centre CENTRALE for contemporary art for the very first time. The two Brussels organisations welcome two figureheads of the universes of music and art: band Die Antwoord and photographer Roger Ballen, both based in South Africa.

CENTRALE for contemporary presents the first Brussels major show of artist Roger Ballen, The Theater of the Ballenesque, which includes photographs, videos and installations in situ, and also blends in some of the artist’s graphic interventions. Roger Ballen is indisputably one of the most important photographers of his generation. Born in New York in 1950, he has lived and worked in South Africa for more than 30 years.

Better known for his often-provocative photographs, Ballen’s very particular aesthetic stages animals, persons, real against unreal, chaos,life and death in a rare universe recognisable amongst thousands. He elaborated his work during decades in the land of the Springbok where his originally documentary approach evolved towards fiction. His videos, including I fink U freeky, made for the emblematic South-African group Die Antwoord, enjoyed millions of views on Internet.

The Theater of the Ballenesque invites visitors to a completely immersive journey in the universe of the artist. Spectators will be able to fully experience the richness and density of a complex work that explores the meanders of the human spirit. Having graduated in psychology and then geology, Roger Ballen decided to explore the depth of the human mind through the means of photography.

Under the impulsive hand and the methodological eye of the artist, components emerge, becoming the elements of a theatre of the absurd: the Ballenesque.

Within the framework of this exhibition and to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Ancienne Belgique, a concert by internationally-renowned band Die Antwoord will be held on Monday 25 November, and Roger Ballen will provide an artistic intervention to the group’s performance. 

A truly innovative collaboration between two major players of Brussels’ cultural landscape.

More info over Roger Ballen – The The Theater of Ballenesque : www.centrale.brussels