DWAALKRUIS -
the mother’s cave
29.09.2024 / 24.11.2024
The exhibition Dwaalkruis took place from late September to late November 2024 in Bunde, South Limburg. Curated by Lieneke Hulshof, the exhibition explored the historical spiritual connections embedded in the local landscape, including wayside crosses and the traditions surrounding Kroedwusj. It focused on the often-overlooked relationship between nature, religion, and spirituality in the region, highlighting the layered cultural and spiritual histories that continue to shape the landscape.
This artwork, painted on a wooden panel and finished with gold leaf, is inspired by the Lourdes grotto in Bunde. While honoring this devotional context, the work also opens a broader symbolic field by connecting the grotto to the archetype of the Triple Goddess — Maiden, Mother, and Crone — representing a more complete and cyclical understanding of the feminine. The use of gold leaf evokes the luminous quality of traditional icons, emphasizing the sacred dimension of the feminine.
Rather than presenting femininity solely through the lens of purity and virginity, this piece invites a fuller, embodied vision of womanhood: one that includes fertility, creativity, wisdom, aging, and transformation. The grotto becomes both a sacred site and a metaphorical womb, cave, and threshold — a space where spiritual tradition meets ancient, earth-based symbolism. By bringing together Christian imagery and archetypal feminine symbolism, the work creates a layered space of resonance and reflection. The feminine is presented not as a single fixed form, but as a dynamic, living cycle. In this way, the artwork offers an open, contemplative field in which viewers may engage with multiple symbolic registers of the feminine, informed by their own experiential, cultural, and psychological frameworks.
