Pieter Pauwel Gallery 2018

Serge Boularot

Approach

My research focuses on the representation of the human body. My job as a plastic arts teacher naturally led me to analyze the work of past masters, those of Greco-Roman Antiquity as well as of later periods.

Homer uses the terms “thumos”, “psukhé”, and “aion” to describe what animates man, what pushes him to act, what makes him live. These notions, quite abstract for us, were for the ancient Greeks concrete physiological substances. “Thumos” is the spirit, the ordinary consciousness of man. It’s a breath: vaporous, linked to the heart and lungs. The head is the seat of the “psukhé”: the soul or principle of life which, according to the Greeks, is not limited to the brain but extends to all the clear substances of the body: marrow, fat… The “aion”, on the other hand, is the paragon of all fluids: tears, sweat… In this sense, the “aion” is a sign of life, opposed to dryness, a sign of aging and death.

I seek to implement this interiority of man, already thought of as a material conjunction by the Greeks, through matter. I endeavor to transpose the assimilation of moods, feelings, and human psychology with substances and organs to the soil. I try and find the structures and rhythms that spontaneously express the essence of man. How can we externalize physical and psychological beings through matter only?

My work questions this representation of the body through the implementation of various techniques pertaining to today’s array of plastic possibilities. Made with paint, paper, and especially ceramic sculpture, my figurative work is plastic first and foremost. This double dimension of the image of the body inscribed in earth matter signifies a correspondence between man and his representation. Whether they are deaf or imperious, the same impulses animate the represented body and the ceramics that constitute it. This way, matter takes on meaning and the human form expressive force.

David P.

David P. is a busybody who, in order to tirelessly create his paintings, sometimes dips his pen in blood red, sometimes in the darkest black. Each of his works opens the door to a parallel world or a different dimension, populated with teasing little monsters, demonic creatures, and treacherously erotic nymphs. Since he suffers from Peter Pan syndrome, it is not surprising that he also produces a whole range of cuddly monsters and amazing animal drawings. This born and bred Bruxellois has already published many books including Le livre secret du dégoûtant, Elephant man, anatomie d’un monstre, the series Il était une fois… (about the history of Belgium), as well as the series Beurk, la cruelle histoire de l’humanité, in which he shows us a new facet of his art: playful and educational books tinged with the sort of humor that will delight teenagers fond of spectacular imagery. Dive straight into his historical-fantastical-erotic-burlesque universe.

Palix

During my first fifteen years of making illustrations (mainly watercolors), I was a drawer at large trials for the Belgian media, from Marc Dutroux to Salah Abdeslam. I illustrated many posters, beer labels, cars, records, and a dozen books. There are few disciplines I didn’t try my hand at.

For five years now, I’ve been improvising with large-format oil paintings in order to push the limits of my imagination. A bit like an archaeologist who meticulously digs the ground without knowing what he will find there I seek traces of life hidden under the virgin white of the canvases.

I invite you for a graphic walk through infinite landscapes and inner worlds.

Alain Poncelet & Patrick Cornelis

When two cartoonists and absolute fans of the zombie genre decide to do a joint project, it’s a safe bet they will not be pulling punches. Patrick Cornelis (Virus) and Alain Poncelet (Omega Thanatos, Rusalka) give full reign to their imagination in Mortinfernum, halfway between comic and art book. It contains three short stories in comics format, twenty works of art remade in “zombie fashion”, a “hot” chapter, and many other gory details! The book, which will be published at the end of March, will be presented at the BIFFF, including signing sessions and an exhibition.

Contact: Marleen De Schryver marleen@artpieterpauwel.be
Art Projects PieterPauwel
Korte Nieuwstraat 9 b13
9300 Alost