Laurens Legiers

Jan 15

‘Dusk till Dawn’

15.01.2022 — 20.02.2022

Considering his young age, artist Laurens Legiers (1994) has a very recognizable style. His work is clearly legible, his painting technique, even. He uses soft, rounded visuals and modest colours, focusing on the entire motif rather than on minute details. This keeps the surface tempered, mild. As a viewer you can dive in: there are hardly any obstacles, let alone any ego of the artist, present in his harmoniously accommodating images.

Legiers himself declares that he takes inspiration from the romantic landscapes of 19th-century artists such as Caspar David Friedrich: the storms, the wild sea, the dark foreground with a radiant sunlight in the background. However, the sublime dynamics and natural power that the romantics explored cannot literally be found in his work. There is no turmoil. All works, without exception, are characterized by a comfortable symmetry, a harmonious composition and smooth colours. One shade often determines the entire painting; a grey haze seems to hang over some works, as if our view has been darkened by rainy and cloudy weather. Other recent paintings, however, bathe in a warm light; a ray of sunshine after a storm, or a sun rising behind snowy mountaintops. A more romantic image hardly exists.

With the painting of snow, it is the first time that the artist uses larger brushes and a slightly more expressive dabbing technique. Snow, after all, should look fluffy. However, he remains true to the abstract, comb-like yet rounded shape he has appointed to ‘snow’. Within his own visual language, he chooses to represent themes or objects in his very individual way, and they gradually become trusty constants throughout his entire oeuvre. By now, we know and recognize his egg-shaped mountains, his happy-looking lobsters, his starfish, his snails, and his leaves (which, depending on context, might bear similarity to mountains).

This text is partly based on a previous essay entitled The Soft Beauty of the Rain (July 2021).

Excerpt of the exhibition text written by Tamara Beheydt, 2022

Laurens Legiers (°1994) lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium.
Belgian painter Laurens Legiers takes inspiration from Romanticism, reinterpreting its celebration of emotion, imagination, and nature in a contemporary light. Drawing from the atmosphere and imagery of the late 18th century, his work reimagines classic motifs while creating serene, harmonious compositions. Legiers emphasizes the overall motif rather than fine details, resulting in soft, almost graphic visuals that serve as a canvas for his masterful play of light and shadow.
Working from memory and emotion, he simplifies and idealizes his subjects, balancing realistic elements with refined, symmetrical scenes that verge on the surreal. Beneath the tranquil surface of his paintings lies a subtle tension that captures the viewer’s attention. This is heightened by his skillful use of depth and perspective, contrasting sharp, precise edges in the foreground with softened backgrounds.
In recent works, Legiers pushes his experimentation further, incorporating varied textures and recurring elements such as water and raindrops. These additions add depth and dynamism while reinforcing his artistic evolution. Through this approach, Legiers builds a compelling visual language that blends timeless beauty with modern innovation.