Stephan Balleux

A seething mass of paint unfolding over a length of more than four metres: this is what the Brussels-based artist Stephan Balleux presents here, following his first retrospective at the Musée d’Ixelles in 2014. This work first strikes the viewer with its monumental scale. With no beginning or end, it draws us right into the heart of its chaotic and organic process. The key to understanding this painting lies in its title, Paintingpainting. The subject of the work is indeed painting itself, and even more so the gesture that animates it. Consequently, one might expect an actual proliferation of painted matter, but nothing could be further from the truth here. One need only step closer to the work to observe a smooth, sterile surface giving the illusion of a photographic print. To understand this paradox, one must look to Stephan Balleux’s working technique. The artist likes to base his work on photographs found here and there, which he manipulates using computer software. The textural effect achieved then inspires him to create his painting. Stephan Balleux thus establishes himself as a master of cross-media practice in the digital age, even though he likes to point out that he is, above all, a painter.

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