‘Domesticated’, the fourth solo exhibition of Belgian artist Jan De Maesschalck in Antwerp, brings together a unique series of new works.

Two years ago, when De Maesschalck’s parental house was cleared out, the artist discovered in the attic a stack of old newspaper cartoon sections he used to read as a child. They ended up in his studio and when he started looking through them in the spring of 2015, he noticed how certain images had ingrained themselves into his memory. Also, it appeared to him that the patina of the fragile paper would serve as an ideal base tone for skin colour. The papers became the carriers for a new series in which the printed images, like tattoos, shimmer through a number of intriguing gazes. He reads the paper, the printed image, and eliminates and creates. With accurate speed he paints portraits with diluted acrylic paint. The fictional characters are lost in thought or hint at, whether consciously or not, associations with that which is visible to them but which nonetheless remains hidden from us. As always, De Maesschalck manages to stimulate our imagination.

The domestic origins of this new series already largely explain the emotional charge of the title which nonetheless hides another meaning as well. When, after a long time, an animal, plant or human being adapts to its environment, this is referred to as domesticated or tamed behaviour. This also applies to the social adaptation of the human being. The artist says the following about this in the context of today’s society:

‘This socially adapted training and man’s empathic capacity still appears to be, unfortunately, even in this 21st century, a thin top layer, a thin skin, through which the distress, caused and controlled by cruel and ruthless human power, shines like an eternal destiny.’

The exhibition is interspersed with works that connect with the production of the artist of the last two years and which are also presented in the catalogue ‘Jan De Maesschalck 2005-2014’. The characters are unaware of the viewer, but form part of a familiar environment. Women continue to play a leading role while the recognizable references to the book or books have disappeared.

Jan De Maesschalck was invited in 2015 for a solo exhibition during the Münsterland Festival in Germany. Previously, he has exhibited works at the Phoenix Art Museum in the United States, Mu.ZEE in Ostend, the Museum Dr. Guislain in Ghent, De Warande in Turnhout, the Museum of Ixelles and the Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels. His work is collected by numerous private collectors but also forms part of the collections of LA MOCA, the Museum Dr. Guislain in Ghent and Mu.ZEE in Ostend.