Riddle Of The Burial Ground Group Show @ Extra City Kunsthal in Antwerp

In concrete-clad tunnels deep within the earth, radioactive matter is being buried on a daily basis. It is only a question of time before this creates an environmental catastrophe. Not a day goes by without men somehow ruining the planet. Every day we somehow mark our existence on this Earthby transforming the landscape, subverting the rules of nature and, slowly but significantly, damaging it beyond repair.  Just as we now can admire vestiges of past civilizations such as ancient ruins, the generations after us will linger overexcavated caverns andunnaturally bright tunnels. Layersand layers of lethal material, piled underground and ready to react: the catacombs of the future. But when exactly will this be? Who are the people that will look at this catastrophe? How do we even know that there will be people on Earth by that time? Taking responsibility for the future has become the resounding imperative of our age, but  how do we relate to something lost in an undefined future? Such are the questions asked in the group exhibition ‘Riddle of the Burial Grounds,’ which stares unblinkingly into this future: a trashed landscape of industrial ruin, where humanity somehow seems to have lost its dominant role. Riddle of The Burial Ground will be on view until July 17th, 2016 at Extra City Kunsthal, Eikelstraat 25, Antwerp. text and photographs by Sara Kaufman