In this mini-series originated from a dance session by P.A.R.T.S dancer Judith Van Oeckel and reflects my personal experiences during the pandemic 2020-2021. I revisit what felt familiar to me during the long pandemic months of isolation.

Works created between 2019 and 2021

Between 2017 and 2019 I worked on a series of portraits of people I met along my life path. They might appear to the casual viewer as passport photos, taken one drunken night in an abandoned photo-booth, but in the era of quickly replaceable social media profile pictures and selfies - I gaze deep into the personal story of every character I create.... When things move too fast, I tend to slow down and start on a painting, that will spend at least a few months in my studio with me... I am interested in the psychology and unique complexity of my models - models become friends, friends become models, I study them, I live with them, I grow old with them. My portraits show the models as vulnerable people who - in vain - try to hide - under an octopus, behind a plastic bag, a musical instrument or a fishbowl... I try to become an intermediary between subject and viewer, reflecting a meaningful moment in someone’s life, building a connection that goes beyond painted realism. Looking at my works, should be like catching a glimpse of the character's diary or reading a page from his/her biography. The series "You, my dear" is also an ode to the friendship, which in turbulent times was often my only support - but it is also a psychological investigation into what defines us as individuals. Do we derive our identity from and define ourselves by the things we surround ourselves with? Or do we use those things as armor to protect our vulnerable selves?