For his first solo exhibition in the gallery, Adrien Tirtiaux presents a new series of sculptural works, standing on their own but also serving as prototypes or sketches for the large-scale installations he is known for. Taking some distance from the heroic reinforced structures built in public space these recent years, Laisse béton shows concrete in a vulnerable light and explores alternative construction materials such as rammed earth. If concrete in ruins has long been a symbol for the end of the modernist ideal, it also alludes today to the problematic ecological impact of the material and calls for a complex but necessary transition. 

Adrien Tirtiaux (BE, *1980) lives and works in Antwerp. After a first education as a civil engineer architect (UCL, 2003), he graduated in sculpture and performance at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (2008). His work has been shown in numerous institutions in Belgium (Bozar, M HKA, Middelheimmuseum, ikob a.o.) and in Europe (Manifesta 7, Secession Wien, Marta Herford, Le Magasin Grenoble, Ijsselbiennale, MNAC Bucarest a.o.). He was in the final selection of the Young Belgian Art Prize in 2013 and was awarded the Bernd Lohaus Prize in 2018.

www.adrientirtiaux.eu