Archives 2024

Alexia Verstraelen aka Alvex or "Cosmic abstraction".
If the number of stars is estimable despite their apparent infinity, the creative possibilities remain limitless. This is all the more true in abstraction. Just as the universe is expanding despite its fixed content, so Art is constantly developing in line with practical and technical developments. Alexia Verstraelen's work has also unfolded like her own universe of canvases and stars with a recognisable style. A veritable astronaut, the artist has made her way into her own personal galaxy, through the black hole of the imagination. The planets, constellations and other marvels of the cosmos inspire him more than anything else, to the point of constituting the unique but vast subject matter of his works. These are the result of a long process of experimentation and an increasingly complex mastery of her technique, a mixture of chance and controlled gestures: the painter handles the spray can with freedom and spontaneity, always guided by her emotions. Projecting the well-being that moves her with gentleness, or evacuating anger and sadness with tension, it's a constructive way for her to combat depression through pressure. A multitude of stars in colours that are sometimes sober and discreet, sometimes boreal and hallucinatory, compose her sensitive score on a firmament of varied media. Like many artists seeking to escape the world through their creations, Alexia Verstraelen has extracted herself from it, even abstracted herself from it, rocketing towards the secluded confines and magnetic atmospheres of her stellar theatre, inviting us, through art, to do the same.
Lionel Lebeau 

Vincent de Jaegher was introduced to painting at the age of 12 by his artist aunt.

A keen traveller, he travelled the world and spent several years in Japan, where he immersed himself in the culture. You can see this in his paintings, which have a touch of Zen calligraphy.

Curves, counter-curves, notes of colour, yes notes, that's the word, because Vincent's works are as much to be listened to as they are to be contemplated. There's a vibrancy to his compositions, which are veritable symphonies, often peaceful and joyful, reflecting the artist's playful character, but sometimes darker, because no one is immune to the tumult of the world. Vincent sails from Vivaldi to Prokofiev.

Influenced by Turner and the master Zao Wou-Ki, whom he met in his Paris studio, Vincent nevertheless had his own personality. Once you've seen one of his works, it's easy to identify the others as his own. This characteristic is the prerogative of true artists whose independence defies convention.

Vincent was a hard worker who painted discreetly throughout his life, his approach being an inner quest. Seeking neither fame nor glory, he has rarely exhibited, but always with success. In 2017, he was invited to present his work at the Japanese Embassy in Brussels.

Galerie HVL is proud to present the masterful bursts of colour by artist Vincent de Jaegher. A work that leaves no one indifferent, and above all that does the soul good.

Painter, photographer, video artist, sculptor... Guy Lemaire is a multi-talented self-taught artist. Born in Belgium in 1954, he took an interest in the world of art from an early age. He began his artistic adventure by joining the trends in American photography of the time, more specifically the Witkin, Mapplethorpe, Gatewood and other movements.

Since then, it has continued to develop, reinvent itself and diversify its styles, techniques and media. 

Over the course of his career, Guy Lemaire has acquired international renown thanks to numerous exhibitions abroad: Tokyo, Amsterdam, Cologne, Milan, as well as Buenos Aires in 2004 with the "Play III" exhibition, which allowed him to be recognised for his work as a video artist. Noted for his talent as a photographer, he was asked by pataphysicians, including André Blavier, to illustrate "Temps Mêlés". An article was also dedicated to him in the renowned American magazine "Collectors Photography USA". His works are present in many prestigious collections such as the Département des Estampes et de la Photographie of the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, the Paul Arden Collection (Saatchi & Saatchi) and the Ken Damy Museum in Milan.

In 2007, in search of creative regeneration, the artist decided to leave the hustle and bustle of the cities to isolate himself in the Fagnes, where he still lives. It is in the serenity of nature that he rediscovers the pleasure of painting. 

Guy Lemaire begins this new chapter with a study of monochrome blacks. Moving on to a period he describes as "German Neo-Expressionism", he then concentrates on the art of primitive peoples, inspired in particular by Aboriginal iconography. Passionate about mathematics, he uses the formulas that govern the laws of our universe to compose his canvases.

For his exhibition "Collectif égocentrique" at Galerie HVL, Guy Lemaire presents his latest works. We look forward to seeing you there to discover the work of this enigmatic character... 

Nicolas Ravet, also known as Toska, is a painter from Liège who has been making his mark in exhibitions and art galleries since 2008. Guided by instinct, he has carved out his own artistic path over the years, wielding his brushes with determination. His style, which he has nurtured, refined and renewed daily for over a decade, is a testament to his unwavering perseverance. He enthusiastically continues to perfect his skills, leaving behind an impressive collection of works.

Toska's artistic approach is rooted in the breakdown of her environment into synthesised forms such as circles, triangles and squares. His overall composition is marked by intuition. Through his work, he seeks to capture the flow of life, to grasp the guiding lines of forms and translate them into pictorial expression. In a dance of criss-crossing strokes, he simplifies the forms as much as possible, plunging ever deeper into the material until he penetrates its cells, its energy, its fluids, and then extracts them.

Toska's aim is to represent Movement, the forces of a larger, universal structure. Like a carefully reconstituted jigsaw puzzle, each element is meticulously placed, creating harmony within a transcendent Whole. Her painting aspires to allow the viewer to perceive the energy of the movements that carry her away, and to intuitively develop a vision beyond the limits of the frame.

He skilfully juggles the excitement of live painting with the tranquillity of his studio. His palette of artistic expression is diverse and varied, ranging from tattoos to objects, furniture, canvases, walls and even shop windows.

His universe oscillates between primitive arts, such as Mayan art, and Street Art, whose influence is undeniable. His style, both recognisable and singular, invites us to lose all notion of space and time, creating a labyrinth of shapes and colours of surprising complexity.

But make no mistake, the apparent simplicity in Toska's work is the result of meticulous preparation. His creations first take shape in his mind, like obsessive ideas, and then unfold in the material world. Starting with compositions or lines of volume, he gradually breaks them down, simplifying as much as possible to plunge ever deeper into the material until he reaches the cells, energies and fluids that make it up.

The artist's technique, an alternative to the spray can, the pipette, allows him to contain a large quantity of paint, generating fluid and regular results. His works immediately captivate the eye, while leaving the mind transfixed. A jack-of-all-trades at heart, he is constantly experimenting with new techniques, such as phosphorescent colours, and exploring hitherto unexpected inspirations, such as the animal kingdom.

In conclusion, his art celebrates perseverance and simplicity in the midst of complexity, opening the doors to bold, intuitive contemplation.

Alexis Remy-Paquay grew up in his home town of Verviers, where he spent his entire youth and completed his secondary education. He went on to study medicine in Namur and Brussels, later specialising in paediatrics.

With an early awareness of art, initially through painting, he gradually turned to photography, exploring both film and digital, finding a way to put his theoretical knowledge into practice. Fascinated by capturing the moment, he likes to appropriate and interpret moments, working in the immediate, varying the play of light and depth.

For the past ten years, Alexis Remy-Paquay has been exploring photography in a self-taught way, favouring a trial-and-error approach. His technique is oriented towards black and white, for the light that cuts through, sublimates and deepens the shadows and nuances, and for the vitality of the features.

His inspirations include the leading artists of black and white photography, mainly street and war photographers, working in action. These include Abbas, Elliott Erwitt, Robert Doisneau, Ursula Schulz-Donnburg, Sebastião Salgado and Graciela Iturbide.

Alexis Remy-Paquay works out of passion, for himself, and has never before shown his work to the general public. Galerie HVL is delighted to be organising the young photographer's very first gallery exhibition. 
Over twenty photographs, all in black and white, will be on show. 
Alexis Remy-Paquay's exhibition, entitled 'Magical Realism', will take you on a journey to the lands of Central and South America.