The Space Between us

With The Space Between Us, Keteleer Gallery presents an exhibition situated at the intersection of art, architecture, and the urban landscape. The works of gallery artists Luc Deleu & T.O.P. office, John Kørner, Luca Monterastelli, and invited artists John Körmeling and Koen van den Broek promise a multifaceted exploration of urban fabric. Central to the exhibition is the concept of 'space' and the diverse ways it can be visualized, interpreted, and experienced.

The five artists engage with an urban context, responding to the layered forms and structures of the contemporary cityscape. They pay close attention to its ever-changing, erratic spaces, finding inspiration in the many possible forms that comprise urban society. This ranges from a conceptual and concrete fascination with public spaces, traffic infrastructure, architectural volumes, or post-industrial aesthetics, to critical attention to transformation processes in the urban living environment and the pursuit of social interaction.

Rather than merely serving as representations or images, the artists use their work as tools for inquiry, introspection, and reflection.

 

The special occasion for this exhibition is the celebration of eighty years of Luc Deleu and sixty years of T.O.P. office.

 

Luc Deleu (b. 1944, Duffel) is a Belgian conceptual artist, architect, and urban planner, and the senior figure among the artists with whom Keteleer Gallery collaborates. When architect-artist Luc Deleu and his wife Laurette Gillemot founded T.O.P. office in 1970, they were acutely aware of the social power of architecture, but also of the art and urgency to harness it. Architecture as an uncompromising tool to define and constantly question the scale of the world. Armed with relentless but humorous logic, a steadfast belief in individual freedom, and a deep concern for ecology, T.O.P. office continues to hold a mirror up to both citizens and politicians—always unsolicited, simply because it must. The fact that most projects will never be built has become incidental; they exist and stubbornly demand attention.

 

Coinciding with the exhibition at Keteleer Gallery, Hopper & Fuchs will release the definitive and comprehensive publication on sixty years of T.O.P. office and eighty years of Luc Deleu.