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KOEN THEYS

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Koen Theys

Koen Thys

BIOGRAPHY

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SELECTED WORKS

NEWS

EXHIBITIONS

kt-17

Koen Theys – What’s the point?, 2007

BIOGRAPHY

KOEN THEYS (° 1963, Brussels) is one of the first artists in Belgium to artistically exploit the medium of video in the early 1980s. Productions such as the ambitious video work Diana (1984) and the interpretation of Richard Wagner’s Der Ring der Nibelungen (1984-1989) caused his international breakthrough.

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One of Theys’ recurrent practices is to deconstruct art history’s great traditions and icons of our western culture and linking them to contemporary issues. He uses artistic methods like displacement, doubling, morphing… to visually manipulate certain well-known western icons or symbols to the point where they seem to be turning against themselves.

Identity in all its forms is one of the artist’s greatest focus. How people present themselves, what they choose to identify with, how (political) group-identities take over and function as a misguiding safe-haven, how the image of one’s self is the drive behind all ambition… and how all this can be very easily lost.

In his latest work, Diasporalia, which was commissioned by the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp for the Year of the Baroque 2018, Theys thinks about the current refugee crisis. 12 unique refugee beds, complete with personal belongings, made entirely out of bronze. The sleeping refugees are missing from the scene, and it’s through their absence that we unavoidably reflect upon their identities. We only have the little remnants of a life in transit and our own imagination and empathy to imagine the personalities, feelings and struggles behind them.

Theys’ work has been shown all over the world and is part of public collections such as MOMA in New York, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the Nouveau Musée in Villeurbanne, the S.M.A.K. in Ghent, the M HKA in Antwerp, the Museum of Modern Art in Brussels, Le Casino in Luxembourg, … and many others.

 

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SELECTED WORKS

 Arabian Nights (3)

Arabian Nights (3)

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 Arabian Nights (2)

Arabian Nights (2)

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 Arabian Nights (4)

Arabian Nights (4)

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 Wall of Man

Wall of Man

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 Diasporalia (Study)

Diasporalia (Study)

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 Background Vocals

Background Vocals

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 Vase (Green)

Vase (Green)

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 Vase (Gold)

Vase (Gold)

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 Vase (White)

Vase (White)

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 Vase (Pink)

Vase (Pink)

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 Vase (Silver)

Vase (Silver)

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 Vase (Blue)

Vase (Blue)

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 Abstraction

Abstraction

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 The Mining of the Natural Resources (2)

The Mining of the Natural Resources (2)

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 Tunnel I

Tunnel I

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 Chateau Classic

Chateau Classic

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 Room with a Double View

Room with a Double View

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 Het Vanitasrecord III

Het Vanitasrecord III

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 PATRIA

PATRIA

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 The Academy III

The Academy III

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 The Academy II

The Academy II

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 The Academy I

The Academy I

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 Stilleven met Appels I

Stilleven met Appels I

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 Death Fucking Metal (Red)

Death Fucking Metal (Red)

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 Death Fucking Metal (Yellow)

Death Fucking Metal (Yellow)

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 Death Fucking Metal (Blue)

Death Fucking Metal (Blue)

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NEWS

 KETELEER @ Art Brussels 2019

KETELEER @ Art Brussels 2019

31/01/2019

KETELEER Gallery is proud to announce its first participation at Art Brussels37th, the international art fair in Brussels, Belgium.

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 Keteleer @ Code Art Fair

Keteleer @ Code Art Fair

29/06/2018

Keteleer Gallery is proud to announce its first participation at Code Art Fair; the international art fair in Copenhagen, Denmark. From 30 August till September 2, 2018 Picture: DO ART Agency - https://www.codeartfair.dk/.

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 Koen Theys – Diasporalia – Cathedral of Our Lady

Koen Theys – Diasporalia – Cathedral of Our Lady

19/05/2018

Koen Theys presents 'Diasporalia', his new installation commissioned by the Cathedral of Antwerp on the occasion of 'Antwerp Baroque 2018'.

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 ART’S BIRTHDAY – M HKA

ART’S BIRTHDAY – M HKA

17/01/2018

Koen Theys presents his video-installation 'The Dynamite Show'...

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 The Raft. Art is (not) lonely

The Raft. Art is (not) lonely

10/01/2018

A major group exhibition in Ostend, Belgium, curated by Jan Fabre and Joanna De Vos.

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 BOOKSHOP at NEXT DOOR

BOOKSHOP at NEXT DOOR

08/01/2018

Pass by our beautiful bookshop, we're open from Tuesday 'till Sunday!

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EXHIBITIONS

 Code Art Fair

Code Art Fair

Copenhagen, Denmark
30.08 — 2.09.2018

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 Koen Theys

Koen Theys

Arabian Nights
03.06 — 19.08.2018

KETELEER

Leopoldstraat 57 - 2000 Antwerp



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 Group Exhibition

Group Exhibition

Forever & Beyond, a tale about drawings
20.05 - 02.07.2017

KETELEER

Leopoldstraat 57 - 2000 Antwerp



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 Koen Theys

Koen Theys

What's the point? Photograhic works 1994-2014
03.09 — 16.10.2016

KETELEER

Leopoldstraat 57 - 2000 Antwerp



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