IKEZOE Shun

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IKEZOE Shun

Participating Project	Exchange Residency Program (Japan-based Creators sent abroad)
Activity Base	Tokyo
City / Place stayed	Brussels / WIELS
Period	2025.4 - 2025.6

Purpose of the residency

A few years ago, a person close to me fell into a coma due to the side effects of schizophrenia medication, and has remained hospitalized and unconscious ever since. This experience has influenced my recent work, leading me to explore themes related to mental illness. As part of this, I plan to conduct research in Geel, Belgium. Shuzo Kure, a pioneer of Japanese psychiatry and mental healthcare, studied in Europe until 1901 and visited Geel, where he observed the region’s progressive healthcare model – the foster care system. After returning to Japan, he worked to improve patient treatment by reforming mental health policies and abolishing private confinement. Geel has maintained a unique tradition since the 13th century, where people with mental illness live alongside local residents in their homes – a practice that still continues to this day. During my visit to Geel, I intend to explore the local perspectives on mental illness and care.

Plan during the residency

• Research on the History of Belgian Psychiatry
  Joseph Gislin is one of the pioneers of European mental healthcare and the first Belgian psychiatrist to recommend scientifically-based treatments for patients. I plan to visit the Gislin Museum and conduct research on the evolution of the history of Belgian psychiatry.
• Research on Kunsthaus Yellow Art in Geel
  Kunsthaus Yellow Art is an art studio established to support people with mental illnesses, emphasizing the creation and discovery of highly artistic works. I plan to visit this studio to deepen my interactions with local artists and related individuals.
• Research on the Geel Foster Family Care
  In Geel, the tradition of Foster Family Care – where people with mental illnesses live with local residents – has been practiced for over 700 years. During this research, I plan to visit Geel to learn about the history and evolution of this tradition while engaging with the local community.
• Interaction at the Open School
  At the Open School held at WIELS, I plan to showcase my ongoing video work exploring the theme of mental illness and care, followed by discussions with the viewers about the topic after the exhibition.

Activities during the residency

I stayed in Geel, where a foster family care system—originating from a medieval saint’s legend and allowing people with mental illnesses to live with local families—still exists. I visited the Saint Dymphna Church, associated with the legend, as well as a guesthouse museum introducing its history, investigating the transformations of the system and people’s awareness over time. Furthermore, I spoke with families currently or formerly involved in the foster care system, as well as with various members of the local community, deepening exchanges while filming on 16mm and other formats. The filmed materials were then developed and scanned at a lab in Belgium.

Outcome of the residency

In order to engage with the community from an embedded perspective, I sought a homestay arrangement and was fortunate to be welcomed by a local family.Establishing a living base in Geel allowed me to have daily interactions with a wide range of people embodying both institutional and cultural aspects of care—such as staff at the Saint Dymphna Church and guesthouse museum, artists affiliated with Kunsthuis Yellow Art, an art studio founded within the psychiatrichospital OPZ, and my host family. One of the most significant outcomes was gaining an embodied and sensory understanding of the relationship between mentalillness and community, beyond institutional frameworks. On the other hand, linguistic and cultural differences, as well as the demands of scheduling interviewsand coordinating production, left little room for rest, which I see as a point of reflection. Moving forward, I hope to incorporate self-care into a more sustainablecreative process. This research also deepened my interest in spaces where “lonely adults” gather, which I intend to continue exploring through observation anddocumentation.

Creator Information