“GAME OVER?” Refers to war games. The cruel reality that takes place outside,from senseless violence and shootings, to war and terror, is translated into a virtual world.A world where there is neither fear nor sadness … where you can just start over again after you died. No threat is created. We make a game of the reality, a game with the same cruelty, but without impact. What if the thin line between reality and fiction melt together? The artworks create a link to banal toys. The (water-) gun, the (cuddly toy-) bomb, the (tank-) rocking horse, … The series depicts images that traverse the thin boundary between fiction and reality, between game and violence, between amusement and sorrow, between hope and destruction.

The technique I use, I define as ‘sootpainting’. My brush is a flame that leaves a fine layer of soot on paper and becomes images. With brushes, needles, … I transform the remaining plumes of the soot into recognizable forms by bringing light in the black soot. I let myself be guided by the medium. The transparency, fluidity, unpredictability and plasticity of the soot play a role of the artworks I create.The association of this medium with fire is both constructive and destructive. Fire stands for danger and devastation, but is also a sign of strength and hope. Is it wrong to think that we can stop bombs with a bubble blower? Do we want to be as naïve as children and flee? Is fantasy a way out or is it where the danger is hiding and we will no longer recognize the fear as it comes closer?

GAME OVER? (I) : 70x100cm
GAME OVER? (II) : 100x70cm
GAME OVER? (III) : 100x70cm
GAME OVER? (IV) : 100x70cm
GAME OVER? (V) : 70x100cm

Materials:
Soot on white paper.