Hadassah Emmerich (Heerlen, 1974) is creating a new work for Be-Part Waregem in the showroom of the former furniture gallery Vynckier. She is realizing a monumental mural in combination with works on paper and canvas.

Hadassah Emmerich immerses the viewer in a substantively layered installation, in which themes such as the female body and identity, the sensual and the voluptuous, as well as the commodification of the erotic and exotic are addressed. Emmerich deconstructs and reconstructs, she dissects and merges, using vinyl templates, among other things. Erotizing parts of the female body she combines with vegetative elements such as plants and flowers. Balancing on the border between figuration and abstraction, they merge, as it were, into new, colorful symbols for sensuality, generosity and broad-mindedness. With a refined use of color and a virtuoso technique, Emmerich questions notions such as femininity, seduction and ornament.

Hadassah Emmerich studied painting and printmaking at the ABK Maastricht, followed by a work period at the HISK (then in Antwerp). From 2003 to 2005 she studied at the renowned Goldsmiths College in London, where she obtained an MA in Fine Art. In 2007-2008, Emmerich worked for a year at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin through the Mondriaan Fund's foreign studio program. Since 2016, she has been living and working in Brussels.

About her artistic practice, Emmerich says: "I think it is important to be active on different fronts: I work both in the studio and site-specific, I realize commissions in public space, I am a guest lecturer at various academies and I show my work in various places such as galleries, museums or project spaces. My attitude as an artist is a mix of curiosity, being outwardly focused, reflective and self-critical, and a dose of romance combined with perseverance.'

The title Hips don't lie refers to the 2005 song of the same name by Shakira. Indian Farah Khan was hired for the choreography of the music video because they wanted the dance to be partly in Bollywood style. Furthermore, the clip features street dancing in costumes similar to those used during the Colombian Carnaval de Barranquilla, one of the most important carnivals in the world, with a long tradition. Starting from her own mixed background (she has Indonesian, Dutch and Chinese roots and her name comes from a German ancestor) Hadassah Emmerich has been interested in cultural appropriation and cultural fusion from the very beginning of her artistry.

Hips don't lie is the sensual dance seen in Shakira's music video. Hips don't lie, and the same honesty and obviousness can also be found in this installation by Hadassah Emmerich, which completely immerses the viewer in an immersive viewing experience.

The exhibition Hips don't lie can be viewed through the window every day between sunrise and sunset. The space will be open to the public on the following days:

- Friday, March 25, nocturne MAART Art Route, 7 to 10 p.m.

- Saturday, March 26, MAART Art Route, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

- Sunday, March 27, MAART Art Route, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

- Sundays 3, 10, 17, 24 April and 1, 8, 15, 22 May, 2-6 p.m.

LOCATION: Extra muros: Henri Lebbestraat 25, 8790 Waregem