Michaël Borremans's (*1963 in Geraardsbergen, Belgium) paintings of reserved color and remarkable virtuosity feature mostly individual figures or small groups acting in a very concentrated manner, using emphatic gestures. Since it is not possible to see precisely what the protagonists are doing, the paintings seem mysterious and surreal. In front of an austere background, the figures are ultimately engaged in senseless acts in a clearly timeless world recalling still lifes: a thoroughly ironic comment from the painter regarding middle-class norms and drives. Borremans finds models and influences for his complex and fascinating works in old photographs from the 1930s and '40s, porcelain kitsch, famous TV series, and literature. In a manner resembling Joseph Cornell's, he assembles these disparate elements and turns them into intimate and poetic tableaux. Exhibition schedule: S.M.A.K., Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Gent, February 5 - April 10, 2005 · Parasol Unit, London, May 3 - June 30, 2005 · The Royal Hibernian Academy, Gallagher Gallery, Dublin, July 14 - August 28, 2005