Niko Hendrickx
Uitslapen met de slapers
The title of the sculpture ‘Sleep in with the Sleepers’ comes from the song ‘Waiting for the Great Leap Forwards’ by Billy Brag from 1988. The lyrics read: ‘You can be active with the activists. Or sleep in with the sleepers. While you’re waiting for the great leap forwards.’
The artwork depicts a sleeper who holds his hands by his face like a pillow and stands in a marching position. The man carries a mattress with him, which is slowly and softly inflated and deflated. Packages of refined sugar are tied to him and the mattress with ropes. When the mattress is deflated, it suffocates the man.
Niko Hendrickx studied at St. Lucas in Ghent, where he obtained a Masters in Sculpture. He strives to make art that is – in every sense of the word – ‘contemporary’. Multitude, dynamism, continuous change and movement are core contemporary concepts for him, which he tries to incorporate throughout his art practice. ‘Transformation’ is the overall concept in this regard.
