| I am a young artist based in Ghent, Belgium. Though I studied interior design in college, being an artist has always been my main ambition. After graduating in 2002, I decided to devote myself to art full time. Since then, I’ve shown my work in exhibitions throughout Belgium. My biggest inspirations are Francis Bacon and the philosophy of Georges Bataille. In my work, I’m interested in exploring the complexity of human relationships and human sacrifices. Equipped with a sober color pallet of browns and ochres, I create a private universe dominated by the symbolic battle between Eros and Thanatos. In Freudian psychology, Eros refers to the libido, libidinal energy or love, the basic instincts innate in all humans. It is the desire to create life that favors productivity and construction. | 
|
Kristof Van Heeschvelde
Kristof Van Heeschvelde, Hallow Swallow, 2007. Oil on canvas, 120 x 120 cm. Courtesy of the artist.I am a young artist based in Ghent, Belgium. Though I studied interior design in college, being an artist has always been my main ambition. After graduating in 2002, I decided to devote myself to art full time. Since then, I’ve shown my work in exhibitions throughout Belgium. My biggest inspirations are Francis Bacon and the philosophy of Georges Bataille. In my work, I’m interested in exploring the complexity of human relationships and human sacrifices. Equipped with a sober color pallet of browns and ochres, I create a private universe dominated by the symbolic battle between Eros and Thanatos.
In Freudian psychology, Eros refers to the libido, libidinal energy or love, the basic instincts innate in all humans. It is the desire to create life that favors productivity and construction. Eros battles against the destructive instinct of Thanatos, who carries out the death wish.
I want to show the viewer the conflict between these deeply rooted instincts. I strive to penetrate the border between known realities and hidden ones and make parallel worlds give up their secrets. In my paintings, everyday elements and recognizable situations are ripped out of context, while phenomenon that normally don’t see the daylight become the central objects of focus.
My paintings seem to be about sex. A closer look reveals that they’re actually about the painful relationships between human beings that are rarely opened for discussion, the ones that defy social acceptance. Bondage and sadomasochism are pitted against the banalities of everyday life. A man sitting on a bench, a woman waiting for the bus, a group of children eating ice cream are seen beside a man tied up, a woman being pulled by her hair, another one dressed as a rabbit. I paint without excuses, explanations or shame.
