May 31, 2014

Edwige Fouvry



Tomorrow is the last possibility to visit the Parcours d'Artistes in St Gilles, Brussels.  I dedicated two postings to this event already but cannot not tell you about the second artist I met two Sundays ago, after Gerard Edsme.  
Indeed,  I so very much enjoyed discovering the work of Edwige Fouvry, a French artist who lives and works in Brussels.  The following is a quote from her website: "Observation, memory and imagination interact in Fouvry’s painterly response to figures and faces, and, now also to landscape. These are intimate paintings, not large in scale, and done with a fluid, elegant brush, creating a smooth texture for canvases of modulated luminous color....In these paintings by Fouvry, we are dealing with a painter whose committed encounters with her subjects evokes in turn the viewer’s resonant response".
http://www.edwigefouvry.com

May 29, 2014

Merode castle in Westerlo


                                       photos by Joseph

I am grateful to Joseph that he put his bike down long enough to take these pictures and mail them to me. His excursion went along the small river Nete through peaceful countryside and he passed by the Castle of the Merode family in Westerlo, located in the South Eastern part of the province of Antwerp. The castle, built in the 14th Century with multiple restorations since then, is the scene of plenty of activities during the summer months, so the public can benefit from its beauty. The Kasteelfeesten take place on July 5 and 6. In August and September of this year, the castle will  host the music festival Historalia. 
www.hisotralia.be
http://www.kasteelfeesten-westerlo.be

May 26, 2014

Gerard Edsme


 Here I finally am with the rest of the story on the "Parcours d'Artistes".  The first artist I visited  was French painter, Gerard Edsme, who showed three sets of paintings under the title "L'atelier du peintre ...Les Reliances". These works form a reference to his travels, to dreams and things to come. There is always light, rhythm and optimism in Edsme's work. 
gerard.edsme.over-blog.com
www.edsme.com

May 23, 2014

Saverys and the Lys in Deinze

 The Albert Saverys exhibition is on till June 15. If you are in the neighbourhood of Deinze, do not miss it. The countryside with its river Lys (Leie) is perfectly peaceful and absolutely gorgeous. I make this little intermezzo from the Parcours d' Artistes to encourage those of  you who have no weekend plans yet to head in the direction of Deinze.
http://www.saverys2014.be
http://www.deinze.be/fb111kmnd934wjkb1bxib96.aspx

May 21, 2014

Parcours d'Artistes

The "Parcours d'Artistes" takes place in the Brussels towns of St Gilles and Forest. It allows the public to peek inside the artist's studio. It offers a chance to meet and talk, the opportunity to discover how the artists create. It is a great way for the visitor to make a personal connection and for the artist to pass the message.
Stay tuned for the next postings about two artists I visited last Sunday at the occasion of the Parcours, Gerard Edsme and Edwige Fouvry

May 19, 2014

From the rooftop

















Sunday afternoon, I visited the atelier of two painters at the occasion of the Parcours d'artistes in the Brussels commune of St Gilles. I will talk about both of them soon and show you their work.
Their workshops are located on the 4th and 5th floor of a building on rue St Bernard which offers a great view of the Palace of Justice on one side and the St Gilles town hall and Albert tower on the other side. Sideways, a view of the Generali Tower, located in the middle of Avenue Louise.

May 18, 2014

Campaigning time


Only one week to go until elections next Sunday, May 25. 
I expect we will see more of this in the coming week. 
On my short walk in Antwerp yesterday, I ran into this colorful group of campaigners.
Belgian Federal Justice Minister Annemie Turtelboom (picture 1 dressed in black) of the liberal Open- VLD party is shown above supporting the Dutch counterpart called D66, campaigning under the slogan "Sterk Nederland, Sterk Europa".

May 15, 2014

Jean-Luc Dehaene

                                              CREDIT: REUTERS/THIERRY ROGE

A few headlines of today's international press announcing the death of former Prime Minister Dehaene.

"Former Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene, who worked as hard to keep his linguistically divided nation together as he did to give Europe more unity, has died. He was 73". 
The Washington Post

"Former Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene, a major figure in European politics throughout the 1990s and a renowned advocate of deeper European integration, died on Thursday aged 73, his party said"
Reuters

"Dehaene was an important politician in Europe - he helped set up the European Union's constitution and led his nation during the 1990s".
The Guardian


« UN HOMME D'ÉTAT HORS DU COMMUN »
Nommé vice-président de la Convention européenne en 2002, il a été l'un des artisans du traité constitutionnel européen, qui sera finalement rejeté en 2005. Il a ensuite été président du conseil d'administration de Dexia entre 2008 et 2012. Jean-Luc Dehaene avait aussi été appelé à résoudre, sans succès, la crise de gouvernance entre Flamands et Wallons.
Le Monde

Brussels airport




 
Belgium's largest airport, Brussels airport,  is located in the town of Zaventem, Northeast of Brussels.
Of and on, for many years, flight plans have been a real issue as residents in the densely populated areas in and around Brussels have complained about the noise levels. 
The controversy opposes Flemish and Francophone communities and in the recent past,  new flight plans  have been proposed and altered.
With the election of May 25 drawing closer,  the case is suspended. 
Wondering what impact the election results will have on the situation.

May 10, 2014

Antwerp




A quick tour around Antwerp on a rainy Saturday afternoon.

May 08, 2014

From Damme to Bruges











Taking you on a quick trip by car from Damme to Bruges.
Enjoy the ride!

May 06, 2014

Accessible Art Fair Brussels

photo courtesy Accessible Art Fair
Time for the artists among you, readers of TiB, to send in your application form for participation in the Brussels Accessible Art Fair.
If you are an artist, a gallery owner, a designer ... here is  your chance! Accessible Art's  mission is to offer a platform to artists and art lovers and give them an opportunity to see and be seen. October 16-19 in Brussels.
" ...whether it is works from young emerging artists, artists in mid-career, designers or galleries, we bring carefully selected works of art to a captive audience. Our jury of experts, which comprises of Contemporary and Modern art specialists and art journalists, guarantees the quality of the art presented."

May 04, 2014

To the point



 
 Go see the Neo-Impressionist Portrait if your travels take you to Brussels. My favorites are the works of Theo Van Rijsselberghe.  This is where it happened,  I mentioned it before... it was during this visit of these marvellous paintings in which color is so important, that my Panosonic Lumix decided to take only Black and White photographs.