Lieven Herreman | ‘Unfinished’ | 25.02.2023 - 30.04.2023
Born in Oudenaarde in 1956, based in Ghent (Belgium).
Lieven Herreman graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK) in Ghent in 1983. He immediately started working independently as a photographer in both the artistic and commercial circuits. From 1987 to 2018, he combined these assignments with teaching at the Academy of Visual Arts in Ghent. In 1990, he builds a spacious, well-equipped photo studio for photographing objects and works of art.
Based on these diverse experiences, he develops his artistic trajectory in which he questions the meaning and effect of the photographic image obsessively. His stubborn perspective brings us to reflect upon the issues of life itself.
Photography is an obsessive activity to Lieven Herreman, one that shoots in various and often contradictory directions. At least, that’s how Lieven sees it. For the viewers, I believe there’s a distinct connection in his work, stylistically and atmospherically.
He plays with contrasts and the intrinsic and undeniable duality of the world around us. However, in this duality lies acceptance, acknowledgement, an encounter.
There’s light and dark. There’s abundance and desolation; too much and too little are equally important focal points.
At times, the (destructive) image is combined with the actual destruction of the photograph. The image disappears, it is buried, manipulated, altered, an extra layer is added, depth and surface, hence receiving a new lease of existence. Compare it to walking in a small river where the height of the water changes your view of the riverbed continuously.
Do these altered photographs remain images or do they become objects? It seems ironic that a photographer chooses to destroy the image he creates. To Lieven it is about showing and disguising; showing what you don’t see, and what you see is only an excuse.
Undeniable in Lieven’s work is the love for the human being. The female body is the foundation of her mind, spirit and feelings. His borderline ruthless curiosity drives him to seek a connection with the subject, her soul, and the mood of the moment. He explores, delicately and respectfully, but he refuses to embellish, aiming to capture an intrinsic inner truth.
Lieven has an ambivalent relationship with instinct. He desires to know, but not explicitly, he’s mainly looking for a space for his own imaginary projections.
In Lieven’s case photography is first and foremost an activity, the result is what remains of this; a spectre, a trace, a shadow.
Exhibition text by Lizzy Pauwels.
This set of images was not made with a prior purpose in mind and can be seen as a collection in which decomposition, fragmentation and alienation are keywords.
They are impressions of a feeling of distance that everyone, once in a while, experiences in observance of the world or communication with others. The photographer, obsessed with the frailty of things, depicts these often elusory frictions by hiding, dividing, using unusual formats and unbalancing compositions.
“I see what I don’t see, but I am also blind for what is visible.” – Lieven Herreman
Photo Isabelle De Swaef
