Victor Verhelst

Apr 10

‘ALIEN ELVIS vs THE CASINO KAIJU'S’

03.04.2025 — 03.05.2025

‘ALIEN ELVIS vs THE CASINO KAIJU’S’, the most recent solo exhibition by Victor Verhelst (°1997), presents a new series of works that expands on the dystopian cityscapes of Trippy Vegas — vibrant worlds filled with neon lights, digital glitches, and surreal architecture. Through these imagined environments, Victor Verhelst reflects on the overwhelming and seductive nature of virtual worlds.

Victor Verhelst is a Belgian visual artist whose practice spans digital art, risograph prints, textiles, and interactive game technology. Digital techniques are a constant thread throughout his work. His distinctive graphic language combines layered 2D and 3D visual elements, resulting in bold color compositions, playful distortions, and visually striking imagery.

4 AM, beneath the moon’s silent gaze.

Seven souls adrift in the night—chasing gold, adventure, and fleeting delight.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? None care to answer, for another quest awaits.

The ship groans, time marches on,

Yet all that matters is the weight of the next pouch of gilded lies.

Encircled by demons, their eyes burning through the mist—

Three crack jokes and sharpen their blades, three whisper wisdom, and one waits, patient as fate itself.

We charge.

Hammers crash, music lilts like a requiem for the damned, bodies dance with eerie grace.

Flashes of fire sear the dark—

Like Hades upon the waves, like a Cyclops in fevered wrath.

The battering ram pounds through space itself,

The clock convulses, time loses its tether—

And with it, our destination.

The pouch of gold falls,

Scattering into a thousand lifeless shards,

A hollow prize of soulless copper and empty dreams.

None foresaw this wretched fate.

With screeching wheels, we return to the village,

To proclaim our victory over demons,

And the bitter truth of our barren spoils.

But though fortune betrayed us, a greater wealth endured—

The unshaken bond of kinship,

The unyielding trust that made us whole,

The silent oath of loyalty that no coin could replace.

We arrived in Trippy Vegas, and the trumpet's blare

resonated against the stone, The mayor's envoys

waiting for us at the bridge,

their figures shrouded in mist.

But what care had we for the raised flag, the banners fluttering in the wind?

We returned not as conquerors, but as brothers, strengthening the city’s soul,

Already, before the night embraced us, we dreamt of the demons that would rise with the dawn.

And so it came to pass.

Victor Verhelst, 2025

Victor Verhelst (°1997) lives and works in Ghent, Belgium
Victor Verhelst is a Belgian visual artist whose practice spans digital art, risograph prints, textiles, and interactive game technology. Digital techniques are a constant thread throughout his work. His distinctive graphic language combines layered 2D and 3D visual elements, resulting in bold color compositions, playful distortions, and visually striking imagery.
Exploring the intersections between virtual and physical realities, Verhelst constructs immersive worlds filled with neon hues, digital glitches, and surreal architecture. His ongoing project Trippy Vegas envisions a dystopian, hyper-stylized cityscape that reflects on the overwhelming and seductive nature of virtual spaces.
His work has been exhibited at PLUS-ONE Gallery, where he presented his solo exhibiiton ‘TOXIC HAWAII’, a continuation of his Trippy Vegas universe in a mix of framed digital works, risograph prints, tapestries, and site-specific wallpaper. He has also been featured in group exhibitions such as Aesthetic Echoes and ‘…And that’s only (half) the story’. Beyond traditional gallery spaces, Verhelst has collaborated with Café Costume, designed stage visuals for the CORE Festival, and developed immersive textile installations like Starlight Shine at WONDER Festival. His hybrid practice continuously challenges the boundaries between design, technology, and contemporary image-making.