Jan Lauwers / Needcompany: All the good

“Artists must do all they can to make sure that their ‘poetics’ provide a powerful response to the all-devouring political suffocation we now find ourselves in”, Jan Lauwers writes about this piece, which is as much a love story as it is a reflection on war. Meet Elik, a former Israeli elite soldier, who became a dancer after an accident, and young Romy, who firmly believes that the world is good. Lauwers himself, Grace Ellen Barkey and their children are also part of the story, as well as an old bakery, which is both their home and their place of work. Emerging from this is a provocative exploration of the complexity of this world where Europe sacrifices its values, societies are dividing and hatred frequently poisons communication. All the good that exists is accompanied by 800 glass balloons created by a craftsman from the West Bank, a medieval painting by Dutch master Rogier van der Weyden and the question of what freedom in art can mean today.