Le Désir - Lieven De Boeck

THE ARTIST, THE CURATOR, THE PATRON, THE GALLERIST, THE COLLECTOR, THE CRITIC AND THE VIEWER

Seven portraits of desire surrounding an art piece. This new installation consists out of the abovementioned seven protagonists who constitute the natural habitat of an art piece. Seven portraits of seven abstract identities are represented as knitted texts forms that accompany a volume made out of glass-made shape embodying the concept of the Mobius Strip. This glass Mobius Strip can vary in shape, color or scale. This formal concept of Mobius Strip has a profound artistic, mathematical and philosophical background.

In the philosophy of Lyotard, it represents desire. He uses the idea of libidinal energy to describe events and the way they are interpreted or exploited. He developed a philosophy of society referring to the economy of libidinal energies. Lyotard uses the terms libidinal intensities, and affects to refer to events which translate in a more common terminology into feelings and desires. Feelings and desires are often referred towards in the language used in art.

The seven protagonists are asked to answer a set of questions about themselves and their feelings and desires towards art. These individual answers are then translated by the artist into a pattern and text that than is knitted. This knitted portrait accompanies each glass sculpture. The final result is an installation of seven glass Mobius Strip sculptures placed on a knitted shape representing the identity of one of the seven protagonists and their feelings and desires towards art in general.

MATERIALITY

The glass shapes have different colors each chosen by the artist. The knitted text that comes with the glass will have a pattern, texture and colors which reflects the answers of each individual.

ACTIVATION

The exploration will this time be a performance where performers will be walking through the exhibition space carrying their sculpture representing his or her portrait and desires while expressing them verbally and finally position their object in a carefully chosen place in the exhibition room.

Filmed at WhiteHouse Gallery - Lovenjoel

Pictures by Bert Verlinden