Shaky Ground - Peter Dekens

‘Shaky Ground’ originates from a childhood memory associated with the First World War. When one of Peter Dekens’ cousins tried to dismantle an unexploded shell, he was badly injured and died that same evening in the hospital. To this very day, human remains and projectiles are still found every time someone sticks a spade into the soil at the area in Belgium known as the Ypres Salient. Some of the people who live here have developed a sixth sense for this hidden history: where tens of thousands of tourists and travellers pass by unknowing, the locals know that the slightest rise or dip in the road could be an indication that war remnants still lie uneasy beneath the earth. It briefly seemed as though the First World War would be the ‘war to end all wars’. In actual fact, it planted the first seeds of the Second World War. Ultimately, the establishment of the European Community was envisioned as an affirmation of permanent peace in Europe. With the recent developments towards Brexit and the current political dynamics on the European continent, it seems that the awareness of the importance of unity stands on shaky ground again. The traces of a history of war seem to be fading rapidly from memory.