Throwback: Day of the Cosmogolem – Rebel Giants (18 May 2025)

A wild, wonderful day where children took the lead and woke the giant 

On Sunday 18 May, LABIOMISTA came alive with colour, music and movement during the Day of the Cosmogolem – Rebel Giants. Over a thousand visitors joined us for a magical family day full of creativity, play, and imagination – with children and young people at the heart of it all. 

The theme? Rebel Giants – and the mission was clear: to wake the sleeping Cosmogolem, Koen’s giant wooden sculpture and global symbol for children’s rights and hope. But we couldn’t do it alone. 

Throughout the day, families took part in hands-on workshops and wild transformations. Children built small wooden “friends” for the Cosmogolem, symbolising connection and care. They turned into magical characters with face paints, wild hairstyles, and real Koen Vanmechelen’ tattoos. Others explored sound by making music with natural materials – drumming, rattling, tapping and humming their own rhythms. 

The highlight of the day was a collective performance that swept through the entire park. Accompanied by towering stilt-walking Rebel Giants in bright costumes, children and families danced, sang, and marched in a colourful parade, they moved together to awaken the Cosmogolem with sound, movement, imagination.

As the final beats echoed through the park, something shifted – not just in the giant, but in all of us. For a moment, LABIOMISTA became a place where rules didn’t matter, where creativity led the way, and where young voices truly took centre stage. 

Thank you to everyone who joined – the dreamers, builders, musicians, rebels and families who turned 18 May into a day we won’t forget. 

The Cosmogolem is awake. And he’s still listening.