rodolphe janssen is pleased to present Le combat de Carnaval et Carême, a group show with works by Nils Alix-Tabeling, Justin Fitzpatrick, Tom Poelmans and Sharon Van Overmeiren.
The exhibition brings together works by four artists residing in Belgium, who are, each in their own way, returning to a certain type of figuration in painting and sculpture that is loaded with symbols, allegories and metaphors.
The title of the show is derived from painting by Pieter Brueghel the Elder from 1559, that depicts a symbolic fight between carnival and lent, an allegorical battle between religious devotion and profane enjoyment. At the risk of generalising, the aim of the exhibition is to show works by a young generation of artists, who are, in the tradition of the Flemish primitives and their followers, going back to the portrayal of mystical subjects or allegorical scenes, but in a contemporary context. Often based on theories, texts, or historical examples, their works reveal an interest in the history of art, traditions, science, ornaments, religion, fiction, and so on.
The exhibition will open on January 11, 2020, and run until February 25, or the day of Mardi Gras.
