Luc Piron (born 5 January 1952 Willebroek, Belgium) is a Belgian artist.[1][2][3][4] He is a painter and printmaker.[5] He is also a photographer and experiments with the possibilities of computer art.[6]

Luc Piron
Piron in his studio, 2013
Born
Luc Piron

(1952-01-05)January 5, 1952
Willebroek, Belgium, Belgium
EducationMechelen Royal Academy of Fine Arts
AntwerpRoyal Academy of Fine Arts
OccupationPainter

Art school

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Luc Piron studied art at the Mechelen Royal Academy of Fine Arts[7] and at the Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Nationaal Hoger Instituut voor Schone Kunsten van Antwerpen).[4][8][9] While in art school, the young artist received the “Prijs Singer-Frieden voor monumentale schilderkunst” in 1970 and the “prijs Pro Civitate Kleur, lijn, volume” in 1971.[10]

Early recognition in the 1970s

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Luc Piron had his first important group exhibition – with three other artists – in 1974 in the Provinciaal Centrum Arenberg, in Antwerp (= Antwerpen), Belgium.[11] Again in 1974, the well-known poet Herman De Coninck chose him to illustrate a bibliophile book of poems entitled Puur Natuur (Pure Nature).[12] In 1975, the young artist received the “state prize” for engraving – a price awarded to fine artists every three years.[13][14][15] In the same year, Piron took part in the 3rd Triennale of the Lalit Kaba Akademi (National Academy of Arts) in New Delhi, India.[4] The following year Piron had a solo exhibition in the renowned Lens Fine Art Gallery in Antwerp.[16]

In 1977, Piron was invited to take part in an exhibition called Rubens Now at the ICC, the International Cultural Center, in Antwerp. “The Internationaal Cultureel Centrum (ICC) in Antwerp is the first official institution for contemporary art in Flanders. In the 1970s and the early 1980s it contributed decisively to the reception of Belgian and international avant-garde art,” according to a statement of the other major art museum in Antwerp, the Museum of Modern Art, Antwerp or M HKA.[17][18] A year later he cooperated with the composer and sound artist Baudouin Oosterlynck in a performance and environment, the Bondage Room.[4] The Bondage Room performance was an advanced intervention, by Luc Piron and Baudouin Oosterlynck, that reflected his thirst for radical experimentation, but it also reflected the spirit of the times.[19]

Middle and late period

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In 1980 Piron had several exhibitions, including one exhibition in the Museum of Contemporary Art known as the Centraal Museum in Utrecht (The Netherlands).[20] He was featured in several publications, including a radio broadcast.[21] The next year, he exhibited in the gallery Pieter Celie.[22] In addition to many exhibitions in Belgium and The Netherlands, Luc Piron exhibited in such countries as Spain, Germany, Italy, and India. Thus, he had an exhibition in Bilbao (Spain) in 1982.[23] In the same year, his work was discussed in the book Kunstbeeld in Vlaanderen vandaag – “100 Vlaamse kunstenaars.”[24] There were other notable exhibitions, such as the one discussed in 1986 by Willem Elias in the journal VUB Nieuw Tijdschrift.[25]

In 1992, his exhibition “Initialen vaan een verloren landschap” took place in the renowned Lens Fine Art Gallery in Antwerp.[26] In that year, Piron was also invited to take part in the Euregionale international exhibitions in Hasselt that featured artists from the Euregio (Belgium, The Netherlands; West Germany), and that was co-organized by the Ludwig Forum für Internationale Kunst (for short: Museum Ludwig) in Aachen, Germany.[27]

In early 1993, Etienne Wynants reviewed the exhibition “Euregionale ‘92" in the art magazine De Witte Raaf. The exhibition in Hasselt, organized in cooperation with Wolfgang Becker [de], the director of Museum Ludwig in Aachen, featured works by Gabriele Heider, Günther Beckers, Malou Swinnen, Luc Piron, Roel Knappstein, Paul Devens, Daniel Dutrieux and André Delalleau in the Provinciaal Museum, Hasselt (Feb. 1993). Wynants overall impression was not so positive. But the art critic praised the work of Günther Beckers (“Waarlijk een kunstschilder uit de Euregio Maas-Rijn, zoals een reeks mystiekerige portretschilderijen, enkele concerttaferelen en een serie aquarellen illustreren”) and “a series of variations of the landscape theme, lyrical abstract drawings and paintings, done by Luc Piron”.[28]

In Germany, his participation in the Figurenfeld project received attention repeatedly in 2005. Piron's computer graphiques shown in the context of the exhibition “Erfahren, Erinnern” (Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt) reflect on insane, cruel war. They were stimulated by the 'Figurenfeld' land art ensemble of Alois Wünsche-Mitterecker. The press called “Erfahren, Erinnern” an “internationally notable exhibition.”[29]

Again in Germany, Piron took part in the “Hortus – Wander Wunderkammer” exhibition in 2008.[30] De Zuid-Duitse pers schreef over deze tentoonstelling in Eichstätt.[31][32][33][34]

In 2009, Piron participated in the exhibition “Clinamen” in Brussels that was reviewed in the newspaper La Libre.[35][36] And in 2010, he was invited to take part in the exhibition “Niet van Gisteren” in the Cultural Center Mechelen.[37]

During the last decades, Piron has become increasingly interested in the relationships between surface, space, and material. Research related to themes such as "the void" and "chance" resulted in minimalist paintings, prints, computer art, and drawings.[38][39][40] Critics noted a symbiosis of the purely abstract and figurative elements, of that which can be touched and the illusionary.

Since 2010, Luc Piron discovered photography as an artistic medium. His photographic oeuvre tends more towards graphics than to pure photography – he calls it “photographics.” He has taken photos of the landscape of his area, the Flemish Hageland. And he worked for three years on a series of photos focused on the landscape of the Demer river, capturing the four seasons. The result was summed up in artist book, "Demer – Het Land Langs de Rivier" (2014).[6][41][42]

In his series “Shelters” Piron drew on the Flemish love for cabin [cubicle] and brick architecture.

Another large series of photos, entitled “The Invisible Time” (“De on-zichtbare tijd”) engages in a dialogue with Edward Muybridge's “The Human Figure in Motion” in a new pictorial style. The oeuvre of Luc Piron cannot be placed in a stylistic category or an -ism. He remains an experimenting artist in today's visual art. Presently Piron is based in Tielt-Winge. His wife, Greet Stroobants, is a ceramics artist.

Teaching

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In addition to being an independent artist, Luc Piron has also taught etching for a number of years at the Flemish Art Academy in Brussels.[8]

Solo and group exhibitions (selection)

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  • "Annie Debie, Magda Francot, Luc Piron, Paul Van Eyck". Provinciaal Centrum Arenberg, Antwerp, Belgium, 1974.
  • 3rd Triennale-India. Lalit Kaba Akademi (= National Academy of Arts), New Delhi, India, 1975.[4]
  • "Luc Piron", Lens Fine Art Gallery, Antwerp, Belgium 1976.[4]
  • "RUBENS NU [Rubens Now]: Een begrip of een produkt ?", ICC, Antwerp, Belgium, 1977.[43]
  • "Luc Piron, [with] Baudouin Oosterlynck [music]" - Bondage Room. Kessel-Lo, Belgium, Sept. 22-Oct.22, 1978.[4]
  • "Luc Piron", Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens [nl], Deurle, Belgium 1978.[4]
  • "Luc Piron", Museum voor Hedendaagse Kunst Utrecht, The Netherlands 1980.[4]
  • "Luc Piron", exhibition at the Rijkshogeschool voor de Kunsten (RhoK), Brussels-Etterbeek, Belgium 1981.[4]
  • "Erfahren, Erinnern" (the Figurenfeld exhibition), Hofgartenbibliothek, Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Germany, 2005.
  • "Institut Tibetain Yeunten Ling – tentoonstelling 80 kunstenaars". Huy, Belgium, March 25 – April 9, 2007.[44]
  • "Niet van gisteren: Een generatie kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945–1965". Cultuurcentrum Mechelen, Mechelen, Belgium, Oct. 24- Dec. 19, 2010.[45][46]
  • Jaarlijkse Kunsttentoonstelling, Davidsfonds Willebroek, kasteel Bel Air, Blaasveld, Belgium May 2012.[47]

Literature

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  • HUYGENS, Frank / VAN DE VOORD, Anne. Niet van gisteren. Een Generatie Kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945–1975. Mechelen : Stad Mechelen, 2010. [On Luc Piron and others.]
  • LENAERTS, Kris / DEVOS, Claude. Luc Piron. Antwerpen : Lens Fine Art, 1976. (in French) (in Dutch)
  • PIRON, Luc. Bondage Room. n.p. : Piron 1978.

References

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  1. ^ See the short biography of Luc Piron in the book Kunstbeeld in Vlaanderen vandaag: 100 hedendaagse kunstenaars [Visual Art in Flanders Today: 100 Contemporary Artists]. Antwerpen : Collection M HKA, and Tielt : Lannoo, 1982; new edition 2010. 266pp. ISBN 90-209 -1086 -8. (“Het M HKA is een museum voor hedendaagse beeldende kunst, film en beeldcultuur” [the Museum of Modern Art, Antwerp or M HKA "is a museum for contemporary art, film, and the visual arts"]
  2. ^ "Kunstbeeld in Vlaanderen vandaag : 100 hedendaagse kunstenaarsItem uit M HKA Ensembles". M HKA Ensembles.
  3. ^ "Kunstbeeld in Vlaanderen Vandaag: 100 Hedendaagse | Netmarkt". www.netmarkt.be. Archived from the original on 2017-01-09.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "- De bibliotheek van Museum van Bommel van Dam". www.artindex.nl.
  5. ^ A newspaper article in the South German daily Donaukurier refers to Luc Piron as “belgischen Maler und Grafiker” [Belgian painter and maker of etchings]; see: klf, “Prägnante und wachrüttelnde Schau über das Mahnmal im Hessental”, in: Donaukurier, Dec. 8, 2005
  6. ^ a b "Ode aan de Demer in 200 foto's". Het Nieuwsblad. 23 February 2014.
  7. ^ See: Frank Huygens and Anne Van de Voord, Niet van gisteren. Een Generatie Kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945-1975, Mechelen : Stad Mechelen 2010. – See also the article: “plastische kunsten: Luc Piron: grafiek van een prijswinner”, in the magazine Knack, June 16, 1976 which mentions briefly that Piron studied at the “Akademie voor Schone Kunsten in Mechelen.”
  8. ^ a b "Grafiek uit De Antwerpse School: Piron, Luc (1952)". June 24, 2006.
  9. ^ “Etser-graficus L. Piron uit Blaasveld op goede weg”, in: De Standaard, Aug. 23, 1972, p.9-I/III.
  10. ^ See Roel van de Plas' article “Graficus Luc Piron in Galerij Peter Coecke”, in the daily newspaper De Voor Post,…??.. 1974.
  11. ^ See: Provinciaal Centrum Arenberg [Antwerpen] (ed.), Annie Debie, Magda Francot, Luc Piron, Paul Van Eyck. Antwerpen : Provinciaal Centrum Arenberg 1974. Regarding his important exhibitions at the time, see also R. H. Marijnissen's article ”Jonge kunstenaaars bezitten poëtisch klimaat: Vanriet en Piron werken met hun 'uterste macht'”, in the daily newspaper De Standaard, Feb. 26, 1974, p.12. And see: Willem M. Roggeman's article “Luc Piron” in the journal Kunst & Cultuur, No. 12/ May–June 1974, p.6 and also Willy Juwet, “Jong Portret: Luc Piron”, in the magazine Knack, Aug. 1974.
  12. ^ See: Herman De Coninck, Puur natuur. Vier gedichten van Herman de Coninck en vier handgekleurde etsen van Luc Piron. Vierde deel in Hoofts Bibliofiele Serie. Aalst : Uitgeverij Hooft 1974. Regarding this artists book with poems by Herman de Coninck and etchings by Luc Piron, see a book by Ludo Simons (2013) who writes: “In Gent ontstond in 1972 door toedoen van vier jonge kunstenaars de groep Honest Graphics, die in 1974 onder impuls von Louis Paul Boon werd verruimd tot het group HONEST ARTS MOVEMENT […]. H.A.M (of HAM) gaf, behalve het tijdschrift Honest Arts Movement (1974–1988) […] kunstmappen uit met gedichten van Roger Serras […] en W.M. Roggeman […] Vanuit Aalst opereerde vanaf 1973 de uitgeverij HOOFT […]; die bracht een BiblioPele serie met literair werk van […] W.M. Roggeman (Een gePImde droom, 1973, met litho's van Pol Mara), Herman de Coninck (met etsen van Luc Piron), Bert Schierbeek (met litho's van Reinier Lucassen), […] Hugo Claus (Emblemata, met etsen van Camille D'Havé) en anderen.” Ludo Simons, Het boek in Vlaanderen sinds 1800: een cultuurgeschiedenis, chapter 9: Van 1945 tot 2000. Tielt: Lannoo 2013.
  13. ^ "Ons Erfdeel. Jaargang 21 · dbnl". DBNL.
  14. ^ Gerd Seger's article “Luc Piron: Driejaarlijkse Staatsprijs voor graveerkunst”, in the daily newspaper Volksgaat, June 10, 1976. See in addition the article: "plastische kunsten: Luc Piron: grafiek van een prijswinner", in the magazine Knack, June 16, 1976.
  15. ^ "In 1975 kreeg hij de driejaarlijkse Staatsprijs voor Graveerkunst." Archived 2016-11-01 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ See: LENAERTS, Kris and DEVOS, Claude. LUC PIRON. Antwerpen 1976. See also Gerd Seger's article “Luc Piron: Driejaarlijkse Staatsprijs voor graveerkunst”, in the daily newspaper Volksgaat, June 10, 1976 that deals specifically with Piron's exhibition at the Lens Fine Art Gallery in Antwerpen. And see: “Antwerpen stelt tentoon. Luc Piron: de mens als Fremdkörper”, in: De Standaard. ?????.. 1976.
  17. ^ “Het Internationaal Cultureel Centrum (ICC) in Antwerpen is de eerste officiële instelling voor actuele kunst in Vlaanderen. In de jaren ‘70 en de vroege jaren ‘80 draagt het in aanzienlijke mate bij tot het verspreiden en aanmoedigen van de Belgische en buitenlandse avant-gardekunst.” Quoted from the text entitled: Dear ICC – Aspecten van de actuele kunst in Belgie 1970-1985. (Statement of the M HKA Museum for Contemporary Art Antwerpen, Dec. 18, 2004), on the webpage of the M HKA Museum voor Heedendagse Kunst Antwerpen,
  18. ^ N.N, RUBENS NU : Een begrip of een produkt ?, Antwerpen : ICC 1977.
  19. ^ According to the book Niet van gisteren, by Frank Huygens and Anne Van de Voord that focuses on Luc Piron and other artists, this was a turbulent time: In Michelen, for instance, it saw “de opleiding aan de academie onder Ernest Albert en Geert Reusens, de legendarische carnavalbals van Academia, het beruchte café Herten Aas van Frans Croes, verzamelplaats van hippies en provo’s (de kabouters), het Progressief Komitee voor Artistieke Werking […] en de alternatieve scène op de Vismarkt, eind jaren ’60 – begin jaren ’70 (De Muze, de Verloren Zoon, den Akker en de eerste Dijlefeesten) […].” See: Frank Huygens and Anne Van de Voord, Niet van gisteren. Een Generatie Kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945-1975, Mechelen : Stad Mechelen 2010.
  20. ^ See: Museum Hedendaagse Kunst, Utrecht, catalogue with texts by Marcel Boon and Samuel Ijsseling.
  21. ^ See: “Kunst en vliegwerk”, radio program, Oct. 8, 1980, Hilversum IV NCRV, and see the article in Kunst en Cultuur, Oct.1, 1980.
  22. ^ The exhibition was entitled Versuchskaninchen. See: the text by Jo Walbers in the catalogue Versuchskaninchen, May 1981. He was featured in an article by Robert Melders, in De Standaard, June 12, 1981.
  23. ^ See: Arteder Bilbao, catalogue, 1981.
  24. ^ Kunstbeeld in Vlaanderen vandaag – “100 Vlaamse kunstenaars”, Antwerpen : Collection M HKA, and Tielt : Lannoo, 1982Tielt : Lannoo, 1982.
  25. ^ Willem Elias, “Kunst en Wetenschap” [Art and Science], in: VUB Nieuw Tijdschrift, Vol. 2, No.1.
  26. ^ See the catalogue “Initialen van een verloren landschap [Initials of A Lost Landscape]”, Antwerpen : Lens Fine Art Galerij, 1992, with a text by Bert Popelier.
  27. ^ See the Euregionale catalogue with a text by Carine Elen.
  28. ^ In Flemish: “een reeks variaties op een landschap, lyrisch abstracte tekeningen en schilderijen van Luc Piron[...]” See: Etienne Wynants, “Euregionale '92: een flop”, in: De Witte Raaf, Vol. 41, Jan.-Feb 1993
  29. ^ "Früher Schnee von Luc Piron ist Jahresdruck 2005". donaukurier.de.
  30. ^ Zie de “Hortus Eystettensis catalogus, Eichstätt 2008.
  31. ^ ""Rose ist eine Rose ist eine Rose"". donaukurier.de.
  32. ^ mkh, "Die Leere sichtbar machen" [Making the Void Visible], in: Donaukurier 22 juli 2008.
  33. ^ "Wahrlich wunderschöne Wunderkammer". donaukurier.de.
  34. ^ The journalist 'EK' referred to the exhibition as a “the Eichstätt Hortus-Wander-Wonder-Chamber art project that received nationwide attention” (“deutschlandweit beachtete Eichstätter Hortus-Wander-Wunder-Kammer-Kunstprojekt”). - Access to the full text of the articles in the South German newspaper Donaukurier [de] requires payment.
  35. ^ Lorent, Claude (12 September 2023). "Rencontres et affinités". La Libre.be.
  36. ^ see also another reference to this exhibition that took place at the gallery "De Markten, avec Joël Audebert (F), Marianne Berenhaut, Luc Coeckelberghs, Eric Desmet, André Lambotte, Leen Lybeer, Baudouin Oosterlynck, Luc Piron, Dominique Rappez, Francis Schmetz, Lore Vanelslande" Archived 2016-11-01 at the Wayback Machine, and see Andreas Weiland, “New Works by Luc Piron in the 'Clinamen' exhibition in Brussels (2009)”, in: Art in Society, No.8.
  37. ^ "See Frank Huygens and Anne Van de Voord, Niet van gisteren. Een Generatie Kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945–1975, Mechelen : Stad Mechelen 2010. ("Het boek dat verschijnt naar aanleiding van de tentoonstelling is niet opgevat als een tentoonstellingscatalogus." (The book that appeared on the occasion of the exhibition is not regarded as an exhibition catalogue)" (PDF).
  38. ^ Hedwig Neesen refers to Piron's paintings as "minimalistische" (minimalist) works. See his review of Piron's exhibition of photos and paintings in Diest, "Ode aan de Demer in 200 foto's", in the Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, Feb. 23, 2014. Luc Piron's painterly reflections on "the Void" and his minimalism are perhaps inspired by Western artists like John Cage who were influenced by the I-Ching and also by Zen Buddhism. A group exhibition he joined in 2007 reveals his interest in Buddhism, too. It may not be by chance that he chose to participate in the exhibition "Institut Tibetain Yeunten Ling – tentoonstelling 80 kunstenaars" (Huy, Belgium, March 25 – April 9, 2007). See: Kunstenpunt/Beeldende Kunst]
  39. ^ "Huy - Institut Tibetain Yeunten Ling - tentoonstelling 80 kunstenaars | Kunstenpunt - beeldende kunst". bamart.be. Archived from the original on 2015-04-01.
  40. ^ "Luc Piron, "De leegte zichtbaar maaken" / Making the Void Visible", in: H8X12 gallery website" (PDF).
  41. ^ It was also discussed in the article “Fototentoonstelling toont Demer tijdens alle seizoenen” [photo exhibition shows Demer during all seasons], in the daily Het Laatste Nieuws, Feb. 25, 2014.
  42. ^ See also: Frances Morelli and Edward Yang, "Luc Piron's 'Photo-graphiques' of the Demer Landscape", in: Art in Society, No. 13 – an article which describes Luc Piron's “photo-graphiques” of the Demer as “quiet, detached works.” See also Art in Society No. 7 and No. 8.
  43. ^ Group exhibition featuring: E. Bal, Beckers, Jean Bilquin, Jan Burssens, Pieter Celie, J.-J. De Graeve, Hugo Duchateau, Etienne Elias, Gal, Emile Hoorne, Octave Landuyt, Pol Mara, Michel, M. Michiels, Cel Overberghe, Luc Piron, Roger Raveel, Osvaldo Romberg, Roger Somville, Van Geluwe, F. Van Herck, Marcel Van Maele, Jan Vanriet, Walt, Roger Wittevrongel. See also: C.I.C. Gent; "Captive Figure", grafiekuitgave, 1978.
  44. ^ Kunstenpunt/Beeldende Kunst
  45. ^ "Piron participated in the exhibition "Niet van gisteren: Een generatie kunstenaars in Mechelen 1945–1965" that took place in the Cultuurcentrum Mechelen (Oct. 24- Dec. 19, 2010) Other participating artists were: Dominique Ampe, Pol Cockx, Beniti Cornelis, Frans Croes, Eddy Daverveldt, Lode De Preter, Jan De Winter, Gust Dierikx, Ward Dijck, Albertine Eylenbosch, Wim Geerts, Edwig Goyvaerts, Jean Hellemans, Brice Heyndels, Jean-Paul Laenen, Pol Lemaire, Frieda Mariën, Willy Meysmans, Guy Van Bossche, Omer Van Damme, Edith Van Driessche, Willy Van Eeckhout, Marc Vanderleenen, Jef Van Grieken, Marijke Van Kenhove, Roger Van Ouytsel, Willy Verlinden, Jan Vermeiren and Frans Walravens. See the article: "Een generatie kunstenaars uit Mechelen tekent present"". Archived from the original on November 1, 2016.
  46. ^ "Niet van gisteren... | Mechelen Blogt". www.mechelenblogt.be.
  47. ^ [1] Archived 2016-11-01 at the Wayback Machine
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