© Cedric Verhelst
Conrad Willems’ artistic trajectory focuses on geometry, modularity and repetition. From this, he builds a fascinating, multidisciplinary oeuvre that manifests itself through drawings, sculptures, reliefs, performance and, recently, scenography. His work moves at the intersection of architecture and sculpture.
Conrad Willems feels more akin to the builders of a thousand years ago than to the builders of today. Reduced to the building elements of a nostalgic block box – beam, cube, cylinder and arch – the artist creates pared-down, architectural structures. The elementary wooden blocks invite play and form the starting point again and again. The simplicity of the elementary, modular forms, despite their limitations, allow all possible variations of scale and combinations. From simple compositions to complex constructions with hundreds to thousands of blocks, just like the model dismountable and without adhesives. The translation into natural stone gives each construction an important material identity.
From the physical process, stacking and building, the form develops step by step, sometimes starting from a vague desire for a design, but usually the shape of the building block and the movements of his hands dictate the final form of the sculpture. Conrad Willems creates enormous confidence in acting itself, in the actions his hands take. Here he refers to the theory of evolution, to the hands that made us into thinking human beings.
Text: Danielle Wuyts
Conrad is a sculptor living in Ghent, Belgium. His work is characterized by geometry, repetition and modularity, resulting in a highly recognizable visual language. His work has been shown in national and international exhibitions.
Conrad’s two-dimensional work is strongly geometrical. He draws freehand and without a predetermined plan. By repeating simple basic shapes hundreds of times, imperfections arise, forming their own patterns on a larger scale.
His sculptures share the same basic principles. Playing on modularity, the works are often constructed from freestanding, individual pieces in natural stone, wood, brick or concrete. The installations are built live, with the building process becoming a performance and the resulting construction an installation work.
